HuK Forum

Today’s international order is shaped by overlapping crises armed conflicts, democratic backsliding, deepening inequalities, climate breakdown, pandemics and disruptive technologies. These developments strain the post 1945 multilateral system, undermine trust in international institutions and fuel perceptions that international law and human rights are either ineffective or selectively applied. In this light the panel asks from the perspective of the international, the European and the national level whether we are witnessing the decline of multilateralism or a contested transformation towards a different configuration of international law and human rights. It will examine the continuing capacity of the international law framework and human rights to constrain state power and provide protection, alongside the growing role of regional courts, e. g. the European Court of Human Rights. Ultimately, the panel will explore what forms of multilateralism could be both normatively defensible and politically viable, and whether the current turbulence constitutes crisis, transformation, or both. The panel discussion will be accompanied by the presentation of the European Yearbook on Human Rights 2025.