On 13 January, the latest in a series of celebrations to mark the 106th anniversary of the African National Congress (ANC) party took place in South Africa. The party’s plans were announced for the first time by the ANC’s new head, Cyril Ramaphosa, who was elected at the end of December 2017.

Since the middle of February, the internal political situation in South Africa has worsened once again. During South African president Jacob Zuma’s annual address to the country’s parliament, the main opposition parties, primarily the Democratic Alliance and the Economic Freedom Fighters, became rowdy and delayed the president’s speech for an hour. For security reasons, the parliament building was surrounded not by the police, as it was last year, but by  the SADF staff.

Recently, the UN Security Council held a rather extraordinary discussion of the situation in Western Sahara, something that has now been on the UN Security Council’s agenda for over forty years

On 11 March, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe (VC) ruled that Russia must change its law on the Constitutional Court as it relates to allowing the Court to decide on the unenforceability of a European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) judgement…

Five years ago, on Feb. 15, 2011, a war was launched against a project of global significance, which will remain in history as the Libyan Jamahiriya. Libya had shown the international community that there were alternatives to capitalism as a path of development, even after the collapse of the Soviet Union. This model of development that were based on the principles of social justice was unacceptable to the West and was a primary cause of the outbreak of war in 2011…

A few days before the new year of 2016, a whole series of resolutions were adopted at the 70th session of the UN General Assembly, one of which deserves special attention. It is dedicated to a forgotten international crisis and an ultimately forgotten country known as Western Sahara…

An act of terrorism was committed in the heart of Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, on Friday night, January 15. Gunmen armed with heavy weapons attacked Cappuccino restaurant and luxury Splendid Hotel. Hostages were released after a government counter-attack in the next morning as the siege ended. Over 20 men died, while hundreds were wounded. The attack was claimed by Al-Mourabitoun, a branch of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)…

The stability in Africa is undermined by many militant groups, including Boko Haram in Nigeria, Al-Shabaab in Somalia and Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb spreading terrorist activities to Mali, Niger and other countries. The Lord’s Resistance Army, or LRA, deserves special attention. It has been going on a rampage in Uganda since 1987 when it started to fight the government of Yoweri Museveni that came to power in 1986. The group attacks civilians, kills and kidnaps people, including women and children. One of the main accusations against the leaders of the LRA is military use of children…

In accordance with a number of UN Security Council resolutions, the UN Secretary-General must submit reports on the situation in Syria every 30 days. The most recent of these reports was submitted by Ban Ki-moon on 22 October. Despite the fact that the position of UN Secretary-General is entirely neutral, it seems that the current UN Secretary-General has effectively become a «lame duck»…

On Sept. 30 Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the commencement of Russian military operations in Syria. One of the most important premises of the president’s speech was found in his statement that Russia is taking part in this anti-terror operation with strict regard for international law. Let us take a closer look at the legal aspects of Russia’s actions…