General theoretical aspect of criminal liability for committing a criminal offense provided for by article 425 of the criminal code of Ukraine

The article presents a comprehensive general theoretical study of criminal liability for negligent attitude to military service, provided for in Art. 425 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The topic’s relevance is due to the need to clearly define the legal nature of this type of liability and eliminate existing conflicts in law enforcement. The author analyzes the criminal law doctrine, norms of substantive and procedural legislation, decisions of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, and scientific approaches to determining the moment of onset and limits of criminal liability. Attention is drawn to the problem of the lack of a single normative definition of the concept of “criminal liability” in the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which creates difficulties in qualifying criminal offenses in the military sphere. The dualistic nature of criminal liability is revealed, which includes both a “negative” (retrospective) aspect – punishment and state condemnation, and a “positive” (prospective) – a person’s conscious abstention from committing criminally punishable acts. Particular attention is paid to the role of “incentive norms” as a manifestation of the positive aspect of responsibility. The grounds and forms of its implementation are considered, including the possibility of exemption from punishment, mitigation of sanctions, the appointment of a conditional sentence, etc. The need to distinguish between positive and negative criminal liability is substantiated to increase the effectiveness of law enforcement and ensure the principles of legal certainty, justice, and proportionality. The author draws attention to the imperfection of the sanctions of Article 425 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which do not adequately reflect the degree of social danger of the committed acts. It is noted that the existing wording creates risks of applying the same sanctions for criminal offenses of varying severity, which contradicts the principles of individualization of punishment. The conclusion is made about the need to improve criminal legislation related to military crimes, considering the modern requirements of criminal law science, practice, and international standards for protecting human rights. Keywords: objective side, military service, military official, combat situation, punishment, military criminal offenses, war crimes, special period, criminal liability, negligent attitude.