The prosecution of enforced disappearance in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war is extremely relevant, since it concerns gross violations of international humanitarian law and human rights. Not only are enforced disappearances a personal tragedy for the victims and their families, but also an instrument of terror aimed at intimidating the civilian population and suppressing any forms of resistance. In the context of the war, such practices by the aggressor country have acquired a systemic character, which calls for an appropriate international response.
As of 02/23/2026, more than 92,000 military personnel and civilians are believed to be missing in Ukraine under special circumstances. Human rights organizations documenting Russia’s war crimes against Ukraine since 2014 have recorded more than 16,000 civilians who have gone missing or been unlawfully imprisoned.
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale aggression, the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances has documented numerous reports of enforced disappearances committed by Russian armed forces against prisoners of war, civilians, local officials, human rights defenders, journalists, and priests in the occupied parts of Ukraine. The Working Group noted that the actual number of cases appeared to be significantly higher that the number reported.
In 2024, Deutsche Welle reported that a quarter of those servicemen who returned to Ukraine were not confirmed by Russia as prisoners of war, and were thus considered missing in Ukraine. Given that more than 7,000 Ukrainian soldiers are being held captive by Russia, it can be assumed that the Russian side is concealing the whereabouts of approximately 1,700 more defenders—i.e., victims of enforced disappearance.
As of May 2025, thousands of Ukrainian civilians remained forcibly disappeared in Russian detention, according to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation. Between 2014–2019 in Donbas, 4,656 cases were registered, and following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, additional 5,140 cases were registered by human rights defenders.
A 2026 study by international experts found that, rather than being isolated crimes, the enforced disappearances of Ukrainians were a part of large-scale and systematic attacks on the civilian population carried out in accordance with the Russian Federation’s state policy and involving consistent and repeated actions such as persecution, unlawful detention, deportation or forced displacement, torture, rape, and other forms of sexual violence.
The prosecution of such crimes is a key element in the fight against impunity that traditionally accompanies conflicts. The international dimension is of particular importance: enforced disappearance falls under the jurisdiction of international judicial institutions and may be codified as crimes against humanity if committed systematically or en masse. This means that investigating such acts is essential not only for Ukraine but also for the entire international community, which seeks to uphold the principles of the rule of law even in times of war.
Thus, the relevance of prosecuting enforced disappearances lies in three dimensions: protection of human rights, ensuring justice for victims and their families, as well as establishing international standards of accountability for crimes against humanity.
The purpose of our review is to assess the legal capacity of countries that most frequently deal with visits by Russian citizens in the field of prosecution of individuals involved in enforced disappearances in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
The objectives of the review, respectively, are to:
- define the legal framework for the crime of enforced disappearance from the standpoint of international instruments, primarily the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance of December 20, 2006 (the “Convention”);
- analyze the international obligations of the States Parties to this Convention, as implemented in domestic laws and regulations;
- analyze the laws and regulations of those countries, from the standpoint of potential criminal and legal prosecution, where Russian citizens implicated in enforced disappearances of Ukrainian military personnel and civilians are likely to be present;
- assess the possibility of criminal prosecution, based on the principle of universal jurisdiction, of foreigners who have committed the crime of enforced disappearance;
- develop a clear picture of the legislative framework of various states, assess their legal capacity for criminal and legal prosecution of those guilty of international crimes, as well as domestic limitations in the application of the principle of universal jurisdiction.
The methodology of this review is based on a combination of general scientific and specialized legal methods, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon of enforced disappearance and the possibilities for criminal prosecution thereof in an international context. The basic one is the doctrinal (dogmatic) method, which is applied to interpret the norms of international and domestic law and is complemented by a systemic approach that allows us to consider enforced disappearance as a complex legal phenomenon at the intersection of international humanitarian law, criminal law, and human rights law. The historical and legal method was used to describe the evolution of the concept of enforced disappearance and the development of relevant international standards.
The comparative legal method plays a key role in the study—it was used to analyze the national laws and regulations of 26 states selected under the criteria of geographical proximity to the Russian Federation, tourist appeal for its citizens, and the extent of long-term stay within their territory by Russian citizens.
In addition, the desk research method was applied, which involves the analysis of secondary sources: international reports, analytical materials, scholarly publications, and publicly available information resources. In total, 96 scientific and legal sources were processed within the scope of the study, ensuring the adequate veracity of the conducted analysis. This comprehensive approach ensures the appropriate level of validity of the conclusions made, while taking into account the objective limitations of the study.
At the same time, it should be noted that an exhaustive study of the conditions for the application of universal jurisdiction to the crime of enforced disappearance is objectively complicated due to a number of factors of both legal and practical nature. First and foremost, it is a question of dissimilarity between national legal systems, which complicates the conduct of a unified comparative analysis, as well as of the ongoing evolution of legislative changes that are not always promptly reflected in available sources.
Besides, institutional and political constraints that affect the level of international cooperation and the transparency of law enforcement practices should be taken into account. In a number of instances, the failure to implement international legal norms or their perfunctory nature prevents a full assessment of the actual mechanisms of prosecution. The totality of these circumstances determines the selective nature of this review.
Read the study via the link.
