Research
Workshop
International Law in the Context of New Challenges and Threats
Permanent research seminar (PRS) of the Department of International Law, RUDN University
Seminar of the Department of International Law of RUDN is an important scientific platform for discussing current issues of international law and exchanging scientific knowledge between researchers, teachers and graduate students. The main goal of the Seminar is to intensify scientific communication with colleagues from other universities, both Russian and foreign.
Objectives of the research seminar
• Discussion of current international legal issues and presentation of the results of research work
• Assessment of the scientific and practical significance of the presented projects, programs and solutions
• Approbation of dissertations corresponding to the topic of the seminar
Structure
• Anyone can participate in the scientific seminar, including authors of scientific research, listeners and opponents
• For full-time postgraduate students, participation in the seminar is mandatory, which allows them to become familiar with the latest achievements of scientific research
• Leading experts in the relevant field of law are invited to the seminar
Seminar No. 1
Speaker: Alexander Nikolaevich SAVENKOV
Position: Director of the Institute of State and Law of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Member of the Presidium of RAS, Corresponding Member of RAS, Doctor of Law, Professor, Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation
Topic: Historical Truth as a Condition for the Stability of Positive Civilizational Transformations
Date and Time: October 15, 2024 (16:30, Conference Hall of the Law Institute)
Photo: https://disk.yandex.ru/d/yNhqFmA3DV1Dlg
Seminar No. 2
Speaker: Alexey Alexandrovich DRONOV
Position: Chairman of the Court of the Eurasian Economic Union
Topic: The EAEU Court: Issues and Prospects
Date and Time: October 22, 2024 (12:00, Academic Council Hall)
Photo: https://disk.yandex.ru/d/Ry4s8sKBBl406g
Seminar No. 3
Speaker: Ian GROSNER
Position: Head of the Legal Services Department at the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), Chair of the Working Group on the Definition and Delimitation of Outer Space of the Legal Subcommittee of the UN COPUOS
Topic: Modern Issues of International Space Law within UN COPUOS
Date and Time: November 25, 2024 (12:00, Hall 1)
Photo: https://disk.yandex.ru/d/oFbylTsytIJQmQ
Seminar No. 4
Speaker: Bogdan Leonidovich ZIMNENKO
Position: Head of the International Law Department of the Department for the Systematization of Legislation and Analysis of Judicial Practice of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Law
Topic: Acts of International Courts and UN Treaty Bodies on Human Rights in the Practice of Russian Courts
Date and Time: December 3, 2024 (12:00, Academic Council Hall)
Seminar No. 5
Speaker: Innokentiy Igorevich KARANDASHOV
Position: Acting Head of the Department of International Law at St. Petersburg State University (SPbU), Associate Professor, Candidate of Law
Topic: Problems of Interpretation and Application of International Treaty Law
Date and Time: January 21, 2025 (12:00, online)
Seminar No. 6
Speaker: Vladimir Valeryevich KUZNETSOV
Position: Director of the United Nations Information Center in Moscow
Topic: Colonialism / Neocolonialism and the UN
Date and Time: January 24, 2025 (11:00, hybrid format, room 363)
Photo: https://disk.yandex.ru/d/STBVYBJVjOvqGw
Seminar No. 7
Speaker: Yun ZHAO
Position: Professor at the University of Hong Kong (PRC, QS 17 – 2025)
Topic: International Legal Aspects of Dispute Resolution
Date and Time: February 5, 2025 (12:00, hybrid format, room 363)
More than 30 participants attended in person, and over 40 joined online from Russia (RUDN, MGIMO, Diplomatic Academy, Kazan Federal University, VAVT, Nizhny Novgorod State University, HSE, RANEPA, Moscow State Technical University STANKIN), Serbia, Belarus, Congo, Egypt, and Brazil.
Questions Raised:
Men Gaozheng (RUDN, PhD student):
1. How is the applicable law chosen for online settlement of digital disputes (based on ODR)?
2. How are arbitral awards enforced in international law based on the example of the situation in China and Hong Kong?
Qin Zhengxuan (RUDN, PhD student):
3. What are the procedural commercial aspects of banning TikTok, owned by a Chinese company, in the United States?
From the chat:
Alexey Ruzhin (VAVT, Senior Lecturer at the Department of International Law):
4. Does the concept of "one country, two economic systems" continue to operate between mainland China and Hong Kong today?
5. Does Hong Kong have its own anti-dumping, countervailing, and safeguards legislation?
6. Does Hong Kong have any relations with Macau and Taiwan?
Seminar No. 8
Speaker: Valeriy Aleksandrovich Fadeev
Position: Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights, Scientific Director of the Institute of Heritage and Contemporary Society, RSUH
Topic: The Transformation of Humanism
Date and time: February 11, 2025 (12:00, hybrid format, Conference Hall of Law Institute)
After the speech, an active discussion took place, in which professors, graduate students, and students of the Department of International Law participated. The following issues were discussed:
• What was the inspiration for creating the book and the series? Was there an intention to respond to contemporary challenges?
• Which institutions should serve as conduits and set the vector of new humanism: education, religion, or science?
• Is the lack of historical memory among modern people a problem?
• Has the world moved away from a unipolar era to a multipolar one?
• The film expressed the idea that value rationalism is inherently irrational. Should this statement be agreed with?
• How can contradictions arising from the fusion of modern life principles and spiritual values be mitigated?
The discussion contributed to the development of the scientific school of the Department of International Law at RUDN University and will undoubtedly inspire young researchers to pursue new studies.
Seminar No. 9
Speakers:
Viktor Rastrelin, Postgraduate Student, Department of International Law
Viktoria Reshetnikova, Postgraduate Student, Department of International Law
Moderator: Ekaterina Kiseleva, Ph.D. in Law, Associate Professor, Department of International Law, RUDN University
Date & Time: March 25, 2025
Topic: Migration & International Law
Format: Permanent Scientific Seminar of the Department of International Law and the Student Research Society
During the seminar, an academic discussion took place, addressing the following key points:
How are migration and forced displacement correlated for the purposes of international legal regulation?
What is the place of international legal regulation of migration within the system of international law?
What approaches exist to defining an international migrant, and what are their justifications?
What role do human rights play in the international legal regulation of migration, in the work of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and in the adaptation and integration of foreigners?
International legal obligations in the context of migrant adaptation and integration processes
Key platforms for intergovernmental cooperation on migration issues
Is the IOM a tool for implementing the will of individual states or an independent international institution?
Cooperation between the IOM and UNHCR in the area of cross-border population movement
Measures and projects of the IOM that assist migrants in adapting and integrating into host countries
Audience questions after the discussion:
The principle “he who pays the piper calls the tune” doesn’t work in the international human rights system. Do you think this is a fair statement?
Should states invest in the integration of migrants?
Seminar No. 10
Speaker: Frans Viljoen
Position: Professor of International Human Rights Law, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria; Member of the Advisory Committee of the UN Human Rights Council
Date & Time: April 11, 2025 (16:30, Rectorate Hall)
Topic: Twenty Years of the UN Human Rights Council
Following the presentation, a lively discussion took place involving faculty, postgraduate students, and students, during which the following issues were raised:
1. The problems of the educational system in Syria in the context of human rights and the importance of the UN Human Rights Council in their solution
2. The significance and results of the reform of the international human rights system
3. Human rights protection and artificial intelligence
4. Conflicts in the African Union in the context of human rights law
5. The impossibility of reaching a compromise among the Member States of the UN Human Rights Council: is it a problem, and what are the possible solutions?
Seminar No. 11
Speaker: QIN Tianbao
Position: National Distinguished Professor of Law, Director of the Research Institute of Environmental Law (RIEL), Dean of the School of Law, Wuhan University (QS 194). Editor-in-Chief of the Chinese Journal of Environmental Law; Member and Vice Chair of the Compliance Committee of the Nagoya Protocol on ABS; Member of the Committee on Conflicts of Interest of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)
Date & Time: April 11, 2025 (15:00, Rectorate Hall)
Topic: Climate Change Law in China – A General Framework
After the lecture, an in-depth discussion followed, during which the following issues were addressed:
1. Assessment of the existing mechanism for environmental protection, possible more effective approaches
2. Obligations under the Paris Agreement 2015
3. The relationship between the Environmental Code as part of national legislation and international environmental law
4. China's influence on developing countries in the field of environmental protection
5. Measures taken by China to protect the environment
6. The results of the implementation of China's climate program, including a consistent reduction in carbon intensity, systematic increase in the share of renewable energy, and the achievement of carbon neutrality