Host: Lara Bird-Leakey Guest: Dr. Yusra Suedi, Lecturer in International Law, University of Manchester; Visiting Professor, Geneva Graduate Institute

In this important episode of International Law in Crisis?, Lara Bird-Leakey sits down with Dr. Yusra Suedi to unpack one of the most fraught legal and geopolitical flashpoints of our time — the United States’ recent use of force against Venezuela.

Recent U.S. military operations, including lethal strikes against alleged drug networks and the detention of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, have sparked fierce international debate. Critics argue these actions stretch or violate foundational principles of international law, including the prohibition on the use of force, sovereignty, and the narrow conditions under Article 51 of the UN Charter for lawful self-defense.

What constitutes a legitimate claim of self-defense under international law? Can the activities of transnational criminal organisations — such as drug cartels — ever amount to an “armed attack” justifying the use of force by another state? And what legal and normative thresholds must be met before force can be lawfully used beyond a state’s own borders?

In this conversation, Dr. Suedi challenges prevailing narratives that seek to justify the U.S. actions on legal grounds. She argues that no credible legal justification exists for the U.S. strikes under the accepted definitions of self-defense, as drug trafficking does not meet the stringent international law threshold of an armed attack. Accepting such reasoning, Suedi explains, would dangerously expand the exception to the rule against the use of force, undermining the UN Charter’s core protections.

Dr. Suedi also addresses how non-state actors - including organised criminal groups - are treated under international law, the legal distinction between law enforcement and armed conflict, and the broader implications for the international order if powerful states bypass legal constraints for political or economic ends.

Dr. Suedi is a Lecturer in International Law at the University of Manchester, where she directs the LLM programmes in International Law. She also serves as Visiting Professor at the Geneva Graduate Institute and holds a PhD in Public International Law from the University of Geneva. Yusra writes on legal theory and practice at her blog Simplified Approaches to International Law (SAIL), where she explores complex legal issues with clarity and insight.