Summary by Puhiza Shemsedini
The Nathanson Centre supported a three-day workshop titled “How and Why Do Double Standards Matter for International Law?” co-organized by Nathanson Centre Fellow David Hughes alongside Patryk Labuda (Central European University), Nico Krish (Geneva Graduate Institute), Naz Modirzadeh (Harvard Law School), and Dustin Lewis (Harvard Law School). From May 15 to 17, 2025, scholars from various disciplines, legal practitioners, and current and former diplomats, gathered in Geneva to examine how debates around double standards impact the credibility, legitimacy, and effectiveness of international law.
Double standards in international law aren’t a new topic, but recent crises—like Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the war in Gaza—have brought the issue back into sharp focus. Critics often point to hypocrisy, selectivity, or “whataboutism” to question whether international rules and institutions are applied fairly. Yet this raises a deeper challenge: is it possible to speak about double standards in a universal way, or are they always shaped by context, power, and perspective? How do these concerns play out differently across areas like human rights, trade, or conflict law? And, how might insights from other fields help us better understand what’s at stake for the legitimacy and power of international law?
The Geneva event marked the second phase of a broader initiative to critically examine why double standards endure across international legal systems and to assess whether confronting these inconsistencies can lead to more principled and coherent global legal practices. Participants explored critical questions like: How do double standards connect to fairness, justice, and the rule of law? To what extent are concerns about double standards legal issues versus political, ethical, or sociological challenges? The discussions also looked at how accusations of hypocrisy and “whataboutism” influence debates in courts, the UN, and beyond. In addition, the group explored whether double standards might, in certain contexts, serve a functional or strategic purpose in international law—and if so, how to identify the conditions under which such departures from consistency could be considered legitimate or justified.
Panel 3B, discussing Double Standards and International Legal Institutions, featuring the panelists and the participants in one of the classrooms of the Geneva Graduate Institute
The program featured 7 thematic panels, 2 parallel session streams, 1 keynote dialogue, 2 high-level diplomatic forums, and a concluding roundtable discussion. Throughout the conference, over 40 scholarly papers were presented by academics from more than 20 countries. What truly set this workshop apart was its interdisciplinary approach and the depth of discussion. The presentations explored double standards issues across various domains, including human rights, trade, security, climate, migration, and armed conflict. Panels were interactive with a high level of engagement from the audience and thought-provoking conversations which continued during coffee breaks.
A highlight of the event was the keynote conversation between former President of Slovenia and current President of the Club de Madrid, Danilo Türk and Harvard Law School Professor Naz Modirzadeh. Reflecting on his own experience and thinking about the reality of practicing international relations, Mr. Türk stated:
“There is no doubt that double standards exist. Double standards deal with the fundamental feature of international relations—international relations are basically about double standards. But the difficult question is what to do about it? Just because we’re right now at a bad time does not mean things don’t change.”
The workshop also hosted two Diplomatic Forums, conducted under Chatham House Rule, which featured interactive panels with distinguished participants including eight current and former ambassadors, two members of the International Law Commission, senior legal counsel from the WTO, and the top legal adviser from the ICRC. These forums allowed for a critical examination of workshop findings about practical policy challenges. Another powerful moment came during the second diplomatic panel, which featured Ambassador Dino Patti Djalal, Former Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia and Indonesian Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Tormod C. Endresen, Norwegian Mission to the UN, Cordula Droege, Chief Legal Officer, ICRC, and Nada Tarbush, diplomat to the Palestine Mission to the UN. In a rare and moving exchange, participants engaged one another directly on the legal and moral implications of double standards in the application of international humanitarian law, highlighting the emotional and political stakes these questions carry in live diplomatic contexts.
Diplomatic Panel 2, featuring Nada Tarbush, Ambassador Tormod C. Endresen, Cordula Droege, and Ambassador Dino Patti Djalal, moderated by Professor John Packer.
These thought-provoking discussions demonstrated the workshop’s commitment to confronting difficult truths and advancing a constructive dialogue on how to address double standards in international law.
The workshop was organized by the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, through its International Law Department and Global Governance Centre. It was supported by the Harvard Law School Program on International Law in Armed Conflict, the Swiss National Science Foundation (Scientific Exchanges grant no. 229373), the Nathanson Centre, Osgoode Hall Law School, and the Neuberger-Jesin Professor of International Conflict Resolution at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law.
The Nathanson Centre’s generous support and partnership helped bring this gathering to life, enabling a productive exchange between academics, diplomats, and practitioners from around the world.
The workshop’s energy and insights are already fueling the next steps, with the organizers preparing an edited volume aimed at academics and policymakers alike. It will be the first full-length book to take a deep dive into double standards in international law—an issue often discussed but rarely explored in depth. The book is set to reflect the diverse perspectives and rich conversations that unfolded over the three days. A policy brief will also translate findings from the Geneva conference into practical recommendations for international actors. Looking ahead, there are discussions about reconvening contributors in 2026 for a smaller follow-up workshop to refine their work and continue the conversation.
