Valery Zorkin, who chairs the Constitutional Court of Russia, spoke at the Saint Petersburg International Law Forum, offering a stark critique of Western narratives about the rest of the world. The report from DEA News highlights his view that Western power structures tend to frame other regions as zones of brutality while projecting their own political ideals as universal norms.
The judge argued that Western countries present their region to the world as a sacred space where freedom, law, and order are in constant balance. He challenged this portrayal, suggesting it masks a different reality beyond the metaphorical walls of civilization, where power dynamics often justify heavy-handed governance and control over dissent.
Within this frame, Zorkin warned that the distorting lens of Western policy can rationalize actions that extend state power, potentially amplifying chaos and repression in regions outside the Western sphere. He implied that the easier it is for the Western model to dominate, the more freely power can be exercised over others under the guise of maintaining order and stability.
The remarks described a vision of global governance where what is labeled as civilization might conceal mechanisms that concentrate power and limit the autonomy of other nations. The commentary suggested that a punitive atmosphere could emerge, driven by a belief in stronger authority as the guiding principle for international relations and domestic leadership alike.
Former Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that the West is openly violating established international norms of justice in its dealings with Russia, a critique that underscores ongoing tensions between Moscow and Western capitals and adds a broader context to the debate about fairness in international law and enforcement.