Steppe and Forest between World Orders: Locating the Political Geography of Eastern Europe in the Deep Time of International Law

While Third World Approaches to International Law (‘ TWAIL ’) has achieved great success in transforming international lawyers’ historical consciousness, this article implores whether a similar reorientation can be accomplished through Second World Approaches to International Law (‘ SWAIL ’). This undertaking must confront substantial methodological challenges, especially accounting for the very distant past. However, this seeming limit can be addressed through a spatial interpretation of Eastern Europe as an interactive zone between varied empires and their progeny. Focusing on the physical geography of the region as a space shaped by the interplay of vast forests and steppe grasslands spanning the Eurasian landmass provides the key to unlocking a rich political history that can vastly contribute to consciousness of international legal origins. Possessed of this knowledge, an international lawyer is equipped to holistically confront imperial legacies, especially as the current age of ‘rising powers’ presents new questions concerning non-Western empires and imperialism.