The term “military aggression” is absent in the Central Legal Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
Received: 05.04.2024
In the official response provided by the Central Legal Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (No. 316/1553 dated April 5, 2024), it is explicitly stated that this body has no regulatory or legal acts containing a definition of the term “військова агресія” (“military aggression”).
Thus, despite the repeated use of this expression in the decrees of the President of Ukraine — in particular, in the Decree on the Introduction of Martial Law (No. 64/2022) and the Decree on General Mobilization (No. 69/2022), where the war is described as “military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine” — the term itself has no normative definition within the Ukrainian legal framework.
Moreover, the Central Legal Department directly refers to Article 1 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Defense of Ukraine,” which employs the term “armed aggression” rather than “military aggression.”
The letter also notes that the definition of “aggression” is provided in UN General Assembly Resolution No. 3314 of December 14, 1974, yet this international document does not establish “military aggression” as a legal category in Ukrainian legislation.
Consequently, a legal paradox arises: key presidential decrees that serve as the foundation for the implementation of martial law and mobilization contain a term that is not codified in any existing legal or regulatory act. This means that the phrase “military aggression” in these decrees is rhetorical and political rather than legally verified.
Such a discrepancy between political rhetoric and the legal framework creates potential legal risks and uncertainty, particularly in the international dimension — for instance, regarding the legal qualification of the conflict, the determination of participant status, reparations obligations, or accountability for war crimes.
Therefore, despite the declarative use of the term “military aggression,” its absence from Ukraine’s normative legal base is confirmed by the official response of the main legal authority of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
