The Politics of Memory Laws: Russia, Ukraine and Beyond

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Uladzislau Belavusau (University of Amsterdam) Aleksandra Gliszczynska-Grabias (Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland)

The Politics of Memory Laws

Russia, Ukraine and Beyond

Uladzislau Belavusau (University of Amsterdam), Aleksandra Gliszczynska-Grabias (Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland), Maria Mälksoo (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) , Angelika Nußberger (University of Cologne, Germany)

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English

Hart Publishing
18 September 2025

Military history; International law of territory & statehood; International humanitarian law

This open access book explores the political utility and consequences of memory laws with a focus on how militant memory laws frame, underpin and generate international conflicts.

Proceeding from Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine, this examination plots how memory laws have preceded, partially led to, and encouraged the outbreak of the war itself via Russian propaganda. It also offers a broader perspective looking at developments in the Baltic States, Belarus, Finland, Germany, Hungary, and Poland, as well as in European (Council of Europe and European Union) law. Bringing together scholars with diverse perspectives, this book provides both analysis and conceptual reflection for scholars assessing the politics of memory laws.

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open Access was funded by the University of Copenhagen.

Edited by: Uladzislau Belavusau (University of Amsterdam), Aleksandra Gliszczynska-Grabias (Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland), Maria Mälksoo (University of Copenhagen, Denmark), Angelika Nußberger (University of Cologne, Germany)
Imprint: Hart Publishing
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 236mm, Width: 158mm, Spine: 26mm
Weight: 1.600kg
ISBN: 9781509975303
ISBN 10: 1509975306
Pages: 360
Publication Date: 18 September 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER 1. SECTION ONE: Memory Laws and Policies in Russia 1.1. An Unspeakable Past: Why and How History Became an Object of Criminal Law in Russia 1.2. Memory Laws and Policies in Russia After the Annexation of Crimea and Occupation of Donbas 1.3. Putin’s Memory Policies in the Context of Military Aggression in Ukraine 2. SECTION TWO: Memory Laws and Policies in Ukraine 2.1. Ukrainian Memory Laws and Policies Before 2014 2.2. Ukrainian Decommunization Laws of 2015 2.3. Ukrainian Memory Laws and Policies in the Context of 2022 Russian Aggression 3. SECTION THREE: Neighbours Actively Involved in the Regional Memory Wars 3.1. Wounds Unhealed: Polish-Ukrainian and Polish-Russian Memory Wars Before 2022 3.2. Memory Laws and Policies in Belarus 3.3. “Critical Situations” and Mnemonic Legislation: Memory Politics in the Baltic States and the War in Ukraine 3.4. From Threat to Example: The Transformation of Russia’s Role in Hungary’s Memory Governance 3.5. Memory Wars and Policies in Finland 4. SECTION FOUR: Shaping European Law and Politics in the Context of Memory Wars 4.1 German Prototype for Memory Laws and Policies in Europe in the Context of Putin’s Instrumentalization of Denazification 4.2 Memory Laws and Policies in the EU and Council of Europe in the Context of Russian Military Aggression from 2014 to 2022 4.3 European Court of Human Rights as a Substitute Nuremberg for the Soviet Crimes in the Baltic States? 4.4. The Looking Glass War: Russian Aggression against Ukraine and the Lessons of World War II in International Memory Politics 5. EPILOGUE - The Battle for the Past: War and Memory in the Post-Soviet Space

Uladzislau Belavusau is Senior Researcher in European Law at the T.M.C. Asser Institute, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Aleksandra Gliszczynska-Grabias is Professor at the Institute of Law Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland. Maria Mälksoo is Professor of International Relations at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Angelika Nußerger is Professor at Cologne University, Germany.

Reviews for The Politics of Memory Laws: Russia, Ukraine and Beyond

In an impressive collective effort, the authors show how legislative battles over versions of historical truth and pseudo-historical mythology are translating into today's large-scale human tragedy and shaking the foundations of international order. When are ""memory laws"" part of the problem of abuse and manipulation of history and how can they become part of the solution? This insightful volume will provide invaluable and much-needed food for thought. * Mykola Gnyatkovkyy, Judge at the European Court of Human Rights Elected on Behalf of Ukraine * Rewriting history, instrumentalising historical memory – these are now among the most important tools of Putinism, used to justify the war against Ukraine and, as Putin's propagandists never tire of repeating, the West as a whole. The dangers and the repressive practice of enforcing laws based on “alternative history” are still not sufficiently known in the West. Describing and analysing them in the current political context, as this book does very convincingly, is of great importance. * Irina Scherbakowa, co-founder of Memorial * A timely, vital and wholly original and compelling set of essays - a collected work that underscores the role of law and legal institutions in managing and manipulating our engagement with history, memory and identity, and reminds that the ownership of truth will never be less than deeply contested. * Philippe Sands, International lawyer and author of 'East West Street' *