1. In 1945, determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, world leaders decided tocreate the United Nations, to ensure respect for international law, to maintain international peace and securityand to promote social progress and better standards of life. Since then, the United Nations has been thecornerstone of the multilateral system of global governance, which has been enriched by a number of otherinternational organisations and informal fora with specialised mandates and varying geographical coverage.

2. Founded in 1949 as a peace project, the Council of Europe has made an outstanding contribution tostrengthening rules-based multilateralism by promoting democracy, human rights and the rule of law andcontributing to creating a single European legal space, through the European Convention on Human Rights(ETS No. 5), whose interpretation by the European Court of Human Rights has made it a “living instrument”and a “constitutional instrument of European public order”, and more than 200 other conventions.

3. Almost eight decades later, the international context has profoundly changed. The effectiveness of therules-based international order is being increasingly challenged by a shift towards multipolarity, with groups ofcountries coalescing around diverging approaches and visions as regards values, systems of governance andthe international order itself. This process is accompanied by the rapid rise of authoritarianism, nationalism,isolationism, unilateralism and pure power politics.

4. The world is currently facing the highest number of conflicts since the end of the Second World War,and the United Nations Security Council is struggling to fulfil its primary responsibility of ensuring themaintenance of international peace and security due to the irreconcilable positions and interests of itspermanent members.

5. The Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine marked the most brutal violation of therules-based international order in recent history, with the Russian Federation trying to change the territorialborders of a neighbouring sovereign State, using violence against civilians as an instrument of war andthreatening the use of nuclear weapons. Such acts constitute a flagrant breach of the United Nations Charterand underscore the urgent need for comprehensive accountability mechanisms and an immediate cessationof hostilities.

6. The Assembly reaffirms that no acquisition of territory by the threat or use of force shall be recognisedas lawful, and calls upon all States to refrain from any action that might be interpreted as legitimising theseizure or annexation of territory in violation of international law.

7. Furthermore, the international community has proved incapable of stopping the escalation of violence inthe Middle East, which began with an appalling terrorist attack by Hamas and other militia groups againstIsrael on 7 October 2023 and has escalated into a major regional conflict, resulting in more than 40 000deaths and a humanitarian crisis of apocalyptic proportions in Gaza.

8. In addition, the result of the 2024 presidential election in the United States raises significant concernsabout the direction of the United States foreign policy and the impact it might have on the multilateral system.

1. Assembly debate on 28 January 2025 (3rd sitting) (see Doc. 16087, report of the Committee on Political Affairs andDemocracy, rapporteur: Ms Dora Bakoyannis). Text adopted by the Assembly on 28 January 2025 (3rd sitting).

See also Recommendation 2288 (2025).

https://pace.coe.int

https://pace.coe.int

Resolution 2581 (2025)1Provisional version

The need for a renewed rules-based international order

Parliamentary Assembly

2 DE ABRIL DE 2025 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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