ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how modern warfare challenges existing international legal frameworks for environmental protection and climate security through an analysis of the Russia-Ukraine War. Through investigation of documented environmental damage, including ecosystem degradation, infrastructure destruction, and unprecedented greenhouse gas emissions, the research reveals critical gaps in current legal mechanisms for addressing war-induced environmental harm. The analysis demonstrates that existing frameworks, from international humanitarian law to climate agreements, prove inadequate in addressing the complex environmental consequences of contemporary armed conflicts. Drawing on Ukraine’s innovative approach to green reconstruction and its commitment to climate goals despite ongoing conflict, the chapter identifies emerging patterns in environmental governance and opportunities for legal reform. The research finds that successful environmental protection in conflict zones requires fundamental changes to international law, including stronger accountability mechanisms for environmental crimes, integration of military emissions into climate frameworks, and development of specialised legal instruments for post-conflict environmental restoration. These findings contribute to broader scholarly discussions on environmental and climate security and provide concrete recommendations for strengthening international legal frameworks to better address the intersecting challenges of armed conflict, environmental protection, and climate change, recognising these as global imperatives that transcend national boundaries and require coordinated international action.
