War crimes on the territory of Ukraine in the conditions of the international armed conflict of the 21st century

Abstract

From the first day of the invasion until today, the Russian Federation violates the laws and customs of war and massively commits war crimes on the territory of Ukraine, which are a serious violation of the provisions of international humanitarian law and pose a threat to the entire international community, for which criminal responsibility is provided both internationally and national levels. In particular, the international legal acts that codify international humanitarian law (laws of armed conflicts, laws of war) and contain a list of war crimes committed in the context of an international armed conflict are:
а) Convention on the Laws and Customs of Land War (excerpt) of July 29, 1899 No. 995_765;
b) IV Convention on the Laws and Customs of War on Land and its annex: Regulations on the Laws and Customs of War on Land dated October 18, 1907 No. 995_222;
c) Geneva Conventions (Convention for the Amelioration of the Fate of the Wounded and Sick in Active Armies (Geneva Convention I) of August 12, 1949 № 995_151, Convention for the Amelioration of the Fate of the Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of the Armed Forces at Sea (Geneva Convention II) of August 12, 1949 № 995_152, Geneva Convention for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (Geneva Convention III) of August 12, 1949 № 995_153, Geneva Convention for the Protection of the Civilian Population in Time of War (Geneva Convention IV) of August 12, 1949 № 995_154);
d) Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949 (Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949 Relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I) of June 8, 1977 № 995_199 and Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949 Relating to the Adoption of an Additional Distinctive Emblem (Protocol II) of December 8, 2005 № 995_200);
g) The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court of July 17, 1998 No. 995_588, which systematizes a complete list of socially dangerous acts that belong to war crimes and were regulated by many sources of international humanitarian law.
In the current criminal legislation of Ukraine, criminal liability for war crimes is regulated in Chapter XX of the Criminal Code of Ukraine («Criminal Offenses Against Peace, Human Security and International Legal Order»), namely in Art. 438 – «Violation of the laws and customs of war».