Table 2 Structured comparative framework...

Table 2

Structured comparative framework of selected cases

Case	Actor type	Principal legal instruments	Institutional arena	Observable strategic outcome
China/South China Sea	State	Interpretive use of UNCLOS; selective treaty interpretation	Law of the sea regime; arbitral and diplomatic arenas	Normative contestation over maritime rights and regional influence
Russia/Ukraine and Crimea	State	Domestic legalization of annexation; selective use of international law; veto politics	ICJ-related claims; UN Security Council; Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) context	Delay, ambiguity and partial insulation from institutional pressure
United States/sanctions and South China Sea	State	Sanctions, asset freezes, litigation support, selective legal backing	Treasury measures; arbitral support; multilateral diplomacy	Strategic pressure without a fully integrated doctrine
Israeli–Palestinian conflict	Mixed	Humanitarian-law claims; International Criminal Court (ICC) framing; public diplomacy and counter-lawfare	ICC discourse; UN bodies; transnational advocacy networks	Contest over legitimacy, accountability and narrative dominance
Taliban/transnational litigation examples	Non-state	International humanitarian law (IHL) accusation, publicity, strategic litigation and reputational mobilization	Battlefield publicity; domestic courts; transnational legal processes	Constraint on stronger actors and increased reputational cost
United Nations arena	Mixed	Resolutions, inquiries, vetoes, investigative procedures	United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), United Nations Security Council (UNSC), United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC), commissions of inquiry	Legitimacy generation alongside enforcement blockage

Case	Actor type	Principal legal instruments	Institutional arena	Observable strategic outcome
China/South China Sea	State	Interpretive use of UNCLOS; selective treaty interpretation	Law of the sea regime; arbitral and diplomatic arenas	Normative contestation over maritime rights and regional influence
Russia/Ukraine and Crimea	State	Domestic legalization of annexation; selective use of international law; veto politics	ICJ-related claims; UN Security Council; Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) context	Delay, ambiguity and partial insulation from institutional pressure
United States/sanctions and South China Sea	State	Sanctions, asset freezes, litigation support, selective legal backing	Treasury measures; arbitral support; multilateral diplomacy	Strategic pressure without a fully integrated doctrine
Israeli–Palestinian conflict	Mixed	Humanitarian-law claims; International Criminal Court (ICC) framing; public diplomacy and counter-lawfare	ICC discourse; UN bodies; transnational advocacy networks	Contest over legitimacy, accountability and narrative dominance
Taliban/transnational litigation examples	Non-state	International humanitarian law (IHL) accusation, publicity, strategic litigation and reputational mobilization	Battlefield publicity; domestic courts; transnational legal processes	Constraint on stronger actors and increased reputational cost
United Nations arena	Mixed	Resolutions, inquiries, vetoes, investigative procedures	United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), United Nations Security Council (UNSC), United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC), commissions of inquiry	Legitimacy generation alongside enforcement blockage

Source(s): Prepared by the author based on the comparative analytical framework developed in this article and informed by the relevant literature, particularly Goldenziel (2021), Williams (2020), Pinos and Hau (2023), Voyager (2020), Nguyen (2025), Perugini and Gordon (2024) and the official sources used in the analysis, including United Nations Human Rights Council reports, United Nations General Assembly resolutions and documents, court materials, sanctions notices, commissions of inquiry reports and official state positions cited in the text

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