Ukraine's Supreme Court rules religious belief does not exempt citizens from military service during wartime

Ukraine’s Supreme Court ruled that citizens cannot refuse military service during wartime based on religious beliefs, emphasizing that the obligation to defend the nation applies to all Ukrainians during Russia’s full-scale invasion, the court's press office said on May 1.

The ruling comes from a case involving a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a religious group whose doctrine forbids any form of military service. Lower courts had convicted a man for failing to report to a military recruitment office after receiving a summons. He was sentenced to three years in prison under Article 336 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code for evading conscription during mobilization.

The man’s defense argued that his refusal was grounded in deeply held religious convictions and that criminal prosecution should not apply in such a case. However, the Supreme Court upheld the conviction, citing the state of martial law and the urgent need for national defense.

“Ukraine has introduced alternatives to (mandatory) military service in peacetime, and Ukrainian citizens can freely use them,” the court said in a statement. “However, in wartime, during mobilization and defensive war, the duty to defend Ukraine, which has been aggressively attacked by the Russian Federation, is imposed on all citizens of Ukraine, regardless of their religion.”

The court added that Ukraine's current state of defensive war against a far larger and more heavily resourced Russia constitutes an “exceptional public need,” which justifies limitations on certain freedoms, including religious exemptions from military service.

Citing previous European Court of Human Rights rulings, the Supreme Court acknowledged the importance of balancing freedom of religion with state obligations. It noted that no ECHR decision has addressed a comparable case involving such a large-scale war and national threat.

The ruling comes amid Ukraine’s broader struggle to address personnel shortages on the front lines. On Feb. 11, the government introduced a one-year voluntary service contract for citizens aged 18–24, offering Hr 1 million ($24,000) in one-time aid and monthly payments of up to Hr 120,000 ($3,000). Volunteers also receive housing and travel benefits upon completion of service.

The initiative aims to attract younger recruits without lowering the draft age from 25 to 18, a move urged by the U.S. but resisted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who argued it could harm Ukraine's long-term future.

Still, the plan has drawn criticism from current service members, who say they receive fewer benefits than new volunteers. “Why are those who enlisted earlier in a worse position?” asked Alina Mykhailova, a Ukrainian paramedic and soldier in a Facebook post in February.

Ukraine is failing the mobilization test

Ukrainian society largely does not want to mobilize. Nearly 6 million Ukrainian men have not updated their information in military enlistment centers, and most of them likely don’t have grounds for a deferment or exemption. Forced mobilization of these men is categorically opposed by society. Rosy-cheeked aunts gather and shout

The Kyiv IndependentIllia Krotenko