Expert Panel at Tehran Dialogue Forum Warns of Global Shift From Law-Based to “Rules-Based” Order

International Law under Siege: From Law-Based to Rules-Based Order

Experts at an IPIS panel warned that Western powers are replacing international law with a selective “rules-based order” undermining sovereignty and the UN Charter. They urged reforms and stronger Global South cooperation to restore a truly law-based system.

Experts at an IPIS panel warned that Western powers are replacing international law with a selective “rules-based order,” undermining sovereignty and the UN Charter. They urged reforms and stronger Global South cooperation to restore a truly law-based system.

At the International Conference titled “International Law Under Assault, Aggression, and Self-Defense”, held Sunday at the Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), a high-level expert panel warned that powerful Western states are eroding the foundations of international law by promoting a politicized “rules-based international order.”

The session, titled “International Law under Siege: From Law-Based to Rules-Based Order,” was moderated by Adnan Tabatabayi, CEO of CARPO (Germany), and featured an international panel of legal scholars, diplomats, and policymakers, including Manal Redhwan (Saudi Arabia), Khalil Shirgholami, Director General of IPIS (Iran), George Katrougalos (Greece), Pierre-Emmanuel Dupont (France), Andrea Margeletti (Italy), and Vincent Cassard of the ICRC.

Panelists emphasized that the growing tension between a universal, treaty-based international legal system and an increasingly selective, Western-driven “rules-based order” has deepened fractures in global governance. They argued that while international law is grounded in the consent of sovereign states and the UN Charter, the “rules-based” framework often allows for arbitrary reinterpretation of legal principles to justify unilateral actions.

Speakers cited the expanding use of unilateral sanctions, extraterritorial enforcement measures, and the use of force without UN Security Council authorization as clear manifestations of modern revisionism. These practices, they noted, have undermined confidence in the impartiality of global institutions and weakened the universality of legal norms intended to govern state behavior.
The panel also referenced recent regional developments, most notably the attack on Iran’s peaceful nuclear infrastructure, as an alarming example of how vaguely defined “rules” are increasingly used to rationalize acts of aggression outside the boundaries of international law. Such incidents, they warned, signal a broader shift away from the principles of sovereignty, non-intervention, and peaceful dispute resolution.

Throughout the discussion, experts explored ways to restore credibility to the international legal system. They highlighted the need for stronger accountability mechanisms, consistent application of the UN Charter, and renewed commitment to sovereign equality. Several panelists stressed that the Global South, long a defender of treaty-based multilateralism, is well-positioned to lead efforts toward rebuilding a genuinely law-based international order.

The session concluded with calls for substantive reforms within key global institutions, including the UN, ICJ, ICC, and IAEA, to prevent political reinterpretations of international law and reinforce the universality of the Charter-based system.