Russia has invaded Ukraine, on the internationally contested basis that its forces need to be mobilised in the breakaway eastern regions of the country, to maintain law and order in the midst of heightened civil conflict, as well as to protect civilians more broadly against an alleged neo-Nazi threat. The Russian government is purporting to invoke the right to humanitarian intervention despite the necessary pre-conditions, including UN Security Council endorsement, being absent.

Russia is acting unilaterally in flagrant violation of international law principles which underpin the sovereignty of nations, peaceful relations between them and respect for the safety, dignity and integrity of civilian life. This is but one of a multiplicity of current global threats which defy resolution or effective response through states operating unilaterally.

Myanmar is another. The February 2021 military coup in that country was followed by serious repression of street protests, human rights violations, resurgent civil strife, and ongoing conflict between the military and warring factions. The ASEAN 5 point plan agreed in April 2021, which called among other things for an immediate cessation of violence in the country and which laid out pathways (including dialogue, mediation, and humanitarian assistance) to assist Myanmar in this regard, has been largely ignored. ASEAN member states themselves have been less than forceful in pushing for its implementation.

This paper focuses on the report, Our Common Agenda, arguably one of the most hard-hitting reports recently released by the United Nations to strengthen multilateralism to address a range of crises, and urges more robust Australian engagement with these processes.