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Unauthorized absence from a military unit under martial law: a criminological analysis based on monographic interviews with offenders

Vladyslava S. Batyrgareieva , Oleksiy M. Togochunskiy

Received 20.04.2026, Revised 20.05.2026, Accepted 30.09.2026

Abstract

The Russian Federation’s full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine has significantly altered the conditions of military service and the nature of risks in the military environment, necessitating a reevaluation of traditional criminological approaches to explaining the nature of unauthorized absence from a military unit. The study was conducted using qualitative methodology – specifically, in-depth interviews – which allowed us to overcome the limitations of normative and statistical tools. The empirical basis consists of the results of fieldwork conducted in the frontline zone of the Donetsk sector in June 2026 through interviews with twenty-four service members from various units of the Defense Forces who had a history of unauthorized absence from military units, but who, at the time of the survey, were continuing to carry out combat missions on the front lines. The authors argue that modern unauthorized absence from military unit no longer fits the “classical” model of evading the military service, which Soviet and post-Soviet doctrines interpreted as a manifestation of cowardice or ideological betrayal. Today, however, this phenomenon manifests as a destructive yet, in terms of its internal logic, rational response by military personnel to systemic failures in the functioning of the military organization. A number of criminological paradoxes of the analyzed phenomenon have been identified, such as: the devaluation of the criminal-law threat and the phenomenon of “legalized” offenses; unauthorized absence from a military unit as a destructive form of legal self-help and an instrument of “forced transfer”; a crisis of military identity against the backdrop of combat experience; the transformation of the motivation for unauthorized absence from military unit from simple evasion of service to a multifaceted protest by the combatant; and unauthorized absence from military unit as a forced channel of feedback between the service member and the command. Based on the generalization of empirical profiles, a typology of offenders has been proposed, including: “professional idealist,” “burned-out combatant,” “situationally disoriented combatant,” “mobilized ‘repeat offender,’” and “physically incapacitated combatant.” Each of these types reflects its own motivational logic behind the decision to commit an offense. It is emphasized that purely repressive measures cannot overcome the widespread nature of this phenomenon, since, in conditions of psychological exhaustion among personnel, the punitive model loses its preventive effect. The strategic direction for countering this issue is identified as the military-pedagogical component of leadership – the development of pedagogical skills among commanders at all levels as the foundation for restoring institutional trust within the Defense Forces, establishing effective communication, and fostering a modern culture of military leadership and mentorship.

Keywords:

unauthorized absence from a military unit; martial law; in-depth interview; criminological paradox; typology of offenders; military crime; military pedagogy; psychological burnout

https://doi.org/10.31359/1993-0909.2026.33.3.343

Retrieved from Journal NALSU №3, 2026 year

Pages 343-370

References Suggested citation

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Suggested citation

Vladyslava S. Batyrgareieva, & Togochunskiy, O.M. (2026). Unauthorized absence from a military unit under martial law: a criminological analysis based on monographic interviews with offenders. Journal of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, 33(3), 343-370. https://doi.org/10.31359/1993-0909.2026.33.3.343