La libre autodeterminación de los pueblos como paradoja internacional: Su uso en la reivindicación imperial rusa

This paper analyzes the principle of the self-determination of peoples from a critical perspective as an international norm used for purposes of hegemonic domination. To this end, its political and normative genesis, its conceptual scope, the contours of the principle, distinguishing it from the concept of sovereignty, and the express recognition that has been made of it within the international community are analyzed in a primordial manner. In the following, the different scenarios in which the principle acquires utility in the international community are unraveled and presented, from an operational perspective to consistently address its legitimizing use in the context of the Russian recognition of the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in the Republic of Georgia, the Russian annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, and the current international conflict between the Republic of Ukraine and the Russian Federation, stopping at the analysis of Peoples' Self-Determination from a Soviet perspective. Finally, the conclusions obtained from the analysis are presented.