Call for Papers: International Conference “International Law and Contemporary Power Politics”
Call for Papers
International Conference “International Law and Contemporary Power Politics”
dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the birth
of Professor Volodymyr Vasylenko (1937-2023)
January 15-16th, 2027, Kyiv
Faculty of Law of the National University of “Kyiv Mohyla Academy” (NaUKMA), its International and European Law Department and Centre for Genocide and Human Rights Studies are pleased to announce the international conference “International Law and Contemporary Power Politics”, dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the birth of Professor Volodymyr Vasylenko (1937-2023).
Volodymyr Vasylenko (1937-2023), a renowned international law scholar, was a Professor of the Faculty of Law at NaUKMA, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine, Ukraine’s representative at the UN Human Rights Council, judge of the ICTY, and Honorary lawyer of Ukraine. His decades-long unwavering dedication to Ukrainian national state building and commitment to international law and values underpinning it, particularly human rights and environmental protection, international criminal law development, genocide studies and the recognition of the Holodomor as a crime of genocide, strongly influenced the implementation of international law in Ukraine, its application by Ukrainian lawmakers and politicians. Volodymyr Vasylenko was at the roots of the restoration of Ukraine’s independence, serving as one of the authors of the documents foundational to cementing Ukraine’s sovereignty and self-determination. His significant intellectual investment in the development of International Law scholarship in Ukraine shaped generations of Ukraine’s international lawyers and helped consolidate Ukraine’s international law community, particularly in the face of ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine and attacks on Ukrainian national identity.
In commemoration of the 90th anniversary of Volodymyr Vasylenko’s birth, Kyiv-Mohyla Faculty of Law will host an international conference titled “International Law and Contemporary Power Politics”. The Conference will aim to formulate recommendations on how to strengthen International Law in building robust and effective responses to contemporary threats, particularly the ever-growing number of international armed conflicts, such as Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The Conference’s key objective is to focus on the complex interrelations between International Law and Real Politics, highlighting the structural and strategic challenges the international legal order faces today across multiple dimensions. Over the past decade, and especially since 2014, Ukraine has become a testing ground for many of the core assumptions of the international legal order – ranging from the prohibition of the use of force and accountability for international crimes to the effectiveness of collective security and international adjudication mechanisms more broadly. These tests are mounting today, reinforced by challenges to international security architecture orchestrated by various states and non-state actors throughout the globe. The initiative underpinning the Conference is not only a response to and reflection on Ukraine’s lived war experiences, but also an opportunity to contribute proactively to global debates on the future of international law and legal order.
The Conference will be built around three main sections:
- Public international law and real politics;
- Power politics in the European integration of Ukraine;
- International criminal law and transitional justice;
- Building resilience through international trade: sanctions, de-risking and economic security.
The Conference is to be held in a hybrid format in Kyiv and online on 15-16 January 2027. In this respect, Kyiv-Mohyla Faculty of Law, its International and European Law Department and Centre for Genocide and Human Rights Studies are pleased to invite submissions for the Conference.
We encourage scholars and practitioners in the field of international law, geopolitics and foreign affairs, particularly those engaged with reputable academic institutions, international organisations or adjudication bodies, who wish to contribute to this dialogue to submit an abstract of no more than 300 words outlining their proposed presentation by 12 October 2026 to ConferencePIL@ukma.edu.ua. Authors of accepted proposals will be notified by 10 November 2026 together with further details concerning their participation in the Conference. Following the event, all presenters will be invited to transform their presentation into a paper for publication (conditional on positive results of peer-review process) in a special issue of Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal – a peer-reviewed Scopus-indexed journal – in Memoriam of Professor Volodymyr Vasylenko.
We very much look forward to your submissions and to welcoming you to the NaUKMA.
Dr Volodymyr Venher, Dean of the Faculty of Law, NaUKMA
Dr Dmytro Koval, Chair and Associate Professor at the Department of International and European Law, NaUKMA
Dr Myroslava Antonovych, Head of the Centre for Genocide and Human Rights Studies and Associate Professor at the Department of International and European Law, NaUKMA
The format will depend on the security situation in Ukraine and any related restrictions in force at the time. Participants will be informed of the final arrangements no later than 10 November 2026.
