Originally published in Russian, this highly acclaimed textbook marks how far Russian doctrine has come since the Soviet era and how it perceives the central challenges of the twenty-first century for international law and order. It is written by prominent Russian scholars and practitioners in international law. The collective of authors is a veritable who's who of international law in Russia, which lends to this volume a special authority and a presence in the discipline. This book represents an alternative approach to teaching and thinking about international law, and is a welcome contribution to comparative approaches to international law. Particular strengths of the volume are recourse to Russian and CIS State practice, including on occasion unpublished sources. There is inevitably a Russian "spin" on aspects of international law, conscious and unconscious, that permeates the work and is exceedingly interesting to read. There are elements of Russian "legal style" no less informative. Russians do see the world differently from Western colleagues in some respects, and they evaluate the forces and processes of globalization, regionalism, integration, secularism, fragmentation, and competition perhaps more systemically than most others. These considerations greatly enrich the book. This volume is also the product of an era in Russian life during which the leadership of that country has placed more emphasis and reliance on international law than any Russian Government since the time of F. F. Martens.