Russland und sein möglicher Austritt aus der EMRK

This contribution looks into Russia’s approach towards its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) as well as its membership in the Council of Europe. The analysis aims to unpack to contradiction-driven relationship between Strasbourg and the Constitutional Court of Russia against the background of Russia’s purported exceptionalist thinking with regard to the concept of sovereignty. It is shown that the Convention’s role in the Russian legal system is humble: While the majority of judgments of the ECtHR are formally implemented, systemic shortcomings regarding legislative reforms and public policy, disregard for the case law of the Strasbourg Court at regional level, as well as strong prosecutorial bias prevent comprehensive compliance with the ECHR. Although major problems indeed exist in the implementation, a huge rift – to the extent of Russia’s withdrawal from the Convention and/or the Council of Europe – is still not to be expected to take place any time soon. It is of essence to see Russia’s approaches to sovereignty – as well as its relationship with supranational bodies such as the ECtHR – not as a monolithic but as a complex, and partly ambiguous, body of approaches to supra-national legal and political structures.

• Harzl , Benedikt C.