How a soldier of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be punished for refusing to carry out an order: the military ombudsman explained.

According to the President of Ukraine's authorized representative for the protection of the rights of servicemen and their families, Olga Reshetylova, a soldier may face consequences for refusing to carry out an order depending on the circumstances.

Depending on the circumstances: there may be disobedience, failure to execute an order. There are various qualifications for this. And a criminal proceeding against him will most likely be opened. However, the opening of a criminal proceeding or an internal investigation occurs to clarify the circumstances. This does not mean that they will immediately be accused and sent to prison – at least we want to come to this and emphasize it to law enforcement agencies

The ombudsman pointed out that as a result of investigations, servicemen can be justified.

Sometimes, conducting an investigation – whether it is an internal investigation, higher command, or the State Bureau of Investigation – conclusions are reached that this order could not be executed or that this order was illegal. Then, this will mean for the serviceman himself that he is justified, meaning there will be no verdict against him. Or, perhaps, there may not even be a suspicion against him, but maybe against the commander

Reshetylova emphasized that for this, quality investigations need to be conducted, including military law enforcement.

Internal investigations should not be conducted formally, but with a real clarification of the circumstances. The military ombudsman will not be able to replace law enforcement agencies, but we can certainly strengthen the investigation from the perspective of upholding human rights and the interests of servicemen

It is worth noting that under the new law 'Army+', there is now a possibility to submit a report to return to service after leaving the unit without permission. According to this law, soldiers who have voluntarily left their units for the first time can return to the front.