In Chapter 4, Applebaum discusses the origins of the modern international human rights framework, starting with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was created post-WWII by a diverse group of drafters with diverse backgrounds in philosophical and legal traditions. Despite the initial opposition from the Soviet Union and other autocratic regimes, Applebaum notes that the Declaration became a foundational document for treaties and multilateral institutions promoting universal human rights.

However, Applebaum argues that autocratic regimes like China and Russia are actively working to dismantle these norms. Such regimes are seeking to replace human rights language with terms like “sovereignty” (102), which implies the development of a new global governance system devoid of external accountability. Applebaum also argues that Russia and China promote “multipolarity” (103) as an alternative to Western values, using it as propaganda to challenge the rules-based order. These initiatives, Applebaum states, are further promoted through organizations like the intergovernmental alliance between Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates (BRICS) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which, according to Applebaum, are meant to legitimize authoritarian rule and erode the influence of democratic values and universal human rights.

Anne Applebaum highlights the growing threat autocracies pose to the rule of law, even within democratic nations, by recounting the 2021 hijacking of a European Ryanair plane by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko.