SEXUAL VIOLENCE AS A WEAPON OF WAR: RUSSIAN PERPETRATION AGAINST UKRAININAS SICE 2022

Анотація

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the conflict has been marred by full-scale violence, displacement, and violations of humanitarian law. Among these grievances are the use of sexual violence against Ukrainian detainees and civilians. The United Nations reports that the use of conflict-related sexual violence has been a recurring and deeply concerning feature of the war (A/HRC/58/67). Acts of this nature include rape, sexual torture, forced nudity, and other forms of abuse. Inflicted on both men and women, the conditions were often under detention or occupation (Noone 2025). While rape and sexual violence have long been considered an “unfortunate side-effect” of war, a shift in focus since 2008, when rape as a method of warfare became a warcrime, has made the strategic use of sexual violence against Ukrainians not incidental (Thomas 1994) (Jayaraman 2008). It appears to be systematic and, in many cases, strategically deployed. This piece argues that acts of sexual violence that were perpetrated by Russian forces against Ukrainians function as crimes against humanity as they are systematically deployed to deliberately terrorize populations, extract information, and assert control. Through the analysis of documented cases, patterns of abuse, and the broader strategic context, this paper demonstrates that sexual violence in Ukraine is widespread as well as purposeful, while also addressing the challenges of documentation, accountability, and capacity building.