This paper examines how states, particularly in Europe, employ sovereignty-based arguments to justify restrictive migration policies, framing humanitarian action as a political challenge to their authority. By delegitimizing humanitarian actors and criminalizing their efforts, these states are reshaping the normative frameworks of the liberal order and signaling shifts in the global political order. These developments reflect a move toward alternative conceptions of state responsibility that prioritize national sovereignty and statist imperatives over cosmopolitan ideals of global justice, often at the expense of upholding universal human rights. Drawing on case studies from Europe and beyond, this paper explores the ethical dilemmas faced by humanitarian actors in navigating shrinking civic spaces and the criminalization of solidarity. It highlights how these restrictive practices and the erosion of global justice and human rights principles reflect broader transformations in global governance, characterized by growing authoritarianism, nationalism, and challenges to the liberal international order. This contribution seeks to provoke discussion on how humanitarian actors can adapt and resist within these contested spaces, offering a critical lens on the intersection of sovereignty, human rights, humanitarian ethics, and the evolving global order.
