The Venice Commission, a European legal body, has ruled that Kyiv cannot force individuals to bear arms or serve in the military if they object on the grounds of conscience.
This decision came after a request from the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, which was reviewing the case of a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church who was subject to mobilization.
Ukrainian courts had previously argued that the law “does not provide for an alternative to military service during mobilization, and the right to express one’s religion or beliefs is not absolute and is subject to the duty to defend the country from foreign aggression.”
After reviewing international and European law, the Venice Commission concluded that conscientious objection to military service cannot be entirely prohibited, even in times of war.
