ABSTRACT
International missions (including the OSCE and the UN) that have operated in Ukraine over the past year confirmed in their reports that Russian troops in Ukraine were repeatedly acting in contravention of the rules of international humanitarian law. The experience of conflicts in which Russia has been involved (including the wars in Chechnya and Syria) proves that Russia, as a rule, does not respect international obligations conducting wars. On the contrary, participation in the commission of war crimes is seen as loyalty to the state, resulting in impunity and even the possibility of promotion. Committing crimes is a tool for Russia to achieve its war goals and to put pressure on the civilian population, the Ukrainian authorities and the Western countries supporting Ukraine. The aim of the article is to present the scale of IHL violations in Ukraine and to discuss and analyze their consequences for Ukraine, the protection of civilian population and resistance building as well as international legal order.
