No 3 (2025)

The subject of this study is the objective signs of planning and preparing an aggressive war (part 1 of Article 353 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). Defining the generic object of the crime under consideration, the author conducts an interdisciplinary study of the concepts of "peace" and "human security". The author emphasizes that the existing concepts of the immediate object in relation to this corpus delicti need to be supplemented. Thus, the main direct object of the crimes provided for in Part 1 of Article 353 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is public relations to ensure peace and peaceful coexistence of states and peoples. Separately, the author examines the planning and preparation of an aggressive war and clarifies their content. The article raises a controversial issue about the qualification of the actions of sabotage and reconnaissance groups: the author clarifies that there is a competition of actions within the framework of the article. In preparing this study, the author used formal legal, historical, comparative methods, as well as methods of induction, deduction and analysis. The author's special contribution to the present study is the illustration of his conclusions. Thus, the author actively refers to historical examples, in particular, to the facts about the Great Patriotic War, and also analyzes modern realities. An analysis of a number of objective signs of the elements of crimes fixed in Part 1 of Article 353 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation led to the conclusion that the content of the acts provided for by the norm is not established in normative acts, and have only doctrinal justifications. Planning and preparation for aggressive war is essentially a stage of preparation for the commission of a crime and includes the commission of such actions as the development of plans, tactical materials and meetings. Preparation for an act of aggression is an action to implement the developed plans. The author also proposed a new definition of "peace", reflecting the essence of this concept for the purposes of applying the norms of Chapter 34 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

The article is devoted to the analysis of the current state and prospects for the development of public control in relation to international non-governmental organizations. The necessity of organizing and exercising public control over international non-governmental organizations, their branches and representative offices in individual states is substantiated. Public control over international non-governmental organizations is hindered by a number of problems: the lack of consolidation and detailing of the institution of public control in the UN Charter; the lack of elaboration in the scientific legal doctrine of issues related to the organization and implementation of public control over international non-governmental organizations; controversial nature regarding the grounds and limits of the above-mentioned public control; absence in national legislation (for example Russia) consolidation of the legal foundations of the organization and implementation of public control over both international non-governmental organizations themselves and their branches and representative offices in Russia; weak powers of subjects of public control; underdevelopment of international associations and unions of public control.  This article uses a number of scientific research methods, in particular: formal-logical; historical-legal; comparative-legal; statistical; sociological. The solution to these problems will require: consolidation in international legislation of the institute of public control (control of civil society); conducting, with the support of the United Nations, as well as structures controlled by it, scientific and practical research on the organization and implementation of public control in relation to international non-governmental organizations, their branches and representative offices; consolidation in Russian legislation as objects of public control over the activities, acts and decisions of international non-governmental organizations, their branches and representative offices operating in Russia; granting real powers to subjects of public control over the above-mentioned facilities (up to the possibility of temporary suspension of the activities of these organizations); adoption of federal programs dedicated to the development of international associations and unions of public control and the participation of Public Chambers of Russia.

The subject of the research is the system of international legal principles for the use of space resources in the context of modern challenges in the development of commercial space activity. The object of the research consists of international legal relations that arise in the process of applying universal principles of international law, sectoral principles of international space law, and developing specific principles for regulating activities related to the extraction and exploitation of space resources. The study aims to systematize the three-level structure of international legal principles, identify their regulatory potential in the context of gaps in specific international legal regulation, and justify the conceptual foundations of the future international legal regime for space resources. Special attention is given to analyzing attempts to circumvent key principles of international space law through national legislation and regional agreements, as well as developing a system of specific principles that can ensure a balance between commercial interests and the imperatives of the common good of humanity. The methodological basis of the research consists of general scientific methods of cognition, including a systematic approach to analyzing the principles of international law, comparative legal analysis of various approaches to the regulation of space resources, as well as the formal-legal method in studying the content of international legal norms. The scientific novelty of the research is determined by the formation of a concept of a three-level system of international legal principles for the use of space resources and the development of an author's system of specific principles in this area of activity. For the first time, a comprehensive analysis of the applicability of universal principles of international law to the use of space resources has been conducted, revealing systemic violations in contemporary state practice. The concept of functional non-appropriation has been justified as an evolution of the classical prohibition of appropriation with respect to modern forms of space activity. It has been established that contemporary state practice demonstrates attempts to circumvent the principle of non-appropriation by empowering private entities with ownership rights, which contradicts the systemic interpretation of the Outer Space Treaty. Practical mechanisms for implementing specific principles have been proposed, including the establishment of an international body for coordinating and licensing activities. It is concluded that there is a need to form an international legal regime for space resources exclusively within the framework of universal international organizations with the participation of all states parties to the Outer Space Treaty.

The issues of monetary cooperation between France and the member states of the West African Monetary Union (WAMU) have received wide coverage in academic literature. However, the phenomenon of the CFA franc as the "last colonial currency" of Africa is considered mainly in a journalistic vein, in a political and historical context, less often – in an economic context. In order to identify the real structural framework of financial neocolonialism, its "drive belts", an in-depth analysis of the legal aspects of this cooperation is necessary through the prism of the theory of unequal treaties. In this regard, a database of documents on France's relations with the WAMU countries in the monetary sphere was formed and uploaded on the database portal of the Institute for African Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences (https://data.inafran.ru), and this article presents its analytical review. The methodological basis of the study includes, among others, the historical-legal and formal-legal approaches which made possible to trace the dynamics of legal regulation of currency relations within the CFA franc zone at three key stages: colonial, postcolonial and post-bipolar. Based on the analysis of an extensive legal framework, it is shown how flexible adaptation to changing economic and legal realities has allowed the main mechanism of French financial neocolonialism in Africa to “keep afloat” for many years. A conclusion is made about the predominantly political nature of the WAMU, which, while being one of the key instruments of “FranceAfrique”, from an economic point of view does not meet the main criteria of optimal currency zones, which is manifested, for example, in the insignificant share of intra-regional trade in the total trade turnover within the WAEMAU. The results of the study may be of interest to specialists in economics, history, international law and international relations. The findings will be especially valuable for experts in the field of French African policy and specialists in African currency zones.

The technology of artificial intelligence is a progressive and groundbreaking technology. The issues of regulating the use of artificial intelligence are actively researched by foreign and domestic scientists. At the same time, the questions of regulating artificial intelligence at the international level have remained insufficiently studied to date. In this article, the author analyzes the approaches of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United Nations, the World Bank Group, and the Commonwealth of Independent States regarding the regulation of artificial intelligence. The main documents developed by these international organizations in the field of regulating artificial intelligence are analyzed. The conducted analysis of the approaches of international organizations to the regulation of artificial intelligence revealed that general terminological approaches to understanding the technology of artificial intelligence and systems based on artificial intelligence are being developed at the international level. The research employed general scientific methods (dialectical method of scientific cognition, systemic method, methods of analysis, synthesis, generalization, induction, deduction, observation, explanation, interpretation, and classification, description of concepts and terms) and specific legal methods (in particular, formal-legal and comparative-legal). It was established that alongside the establishment of terminological foundations, international organizations are developing legal and ethical principles of regulation. Along with legal regulatory principles in the field of artificial intelligence usage, ethical regulation developed at the national level, taking into account general principles formulated at the international level, is of great significance. Maintaining an optimal balance between public and private interests is a fundamental task in creating optimal legal regulation of artificial intelligence technology at both the international and national levels. It should be noted, however, that the issue of allocating responsibility in the use of artificial intelligence technology has still not received sufficient attention at the international level. It is proposed to create a common approach at the international level regarding the regulation of obligations in the use of artificial intelligence and the resultant liability for breaches of the established obligations, with defined limits of liability distribution among those involved in the functioning of artificial intelligence technology.

Astronomical research has always been an integral part of the study of our Universe, long before humans entered outer space. However, with the advent of active space activities, in particular the deployment of large and mega-constellations of satellites in low Earth orbit, access to dark and quiet skies has become threatened. In this regard, many international organizations have turned their attention to this problem to prevent the situation from worsening. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the International Institute of Space Law (IISL), as well as the UN, represented by the subsidiary body of the General Assembly - the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), are the most active in this regard. That is why this study is devoted to studying their initiatives for the legal assessment of the solutions they propose and identifying additional options that can be implemented in practice. To achieve the stated goal, general scientific (analysis, synthesis) and special legal methods were used: formal legal (study of documents of international organizations), comparative legal (comparison of approaches of the IAU, UN, IISL), historical legal (evolution of discussions, starting from 2007) and forecasting (justification of the need to develop a special legal regime). This topic has been comprehensively analyzed for the first time in the Russian science of international law. It has been revealed that the main initiator in discussing the issue of dark and quiet skies is the IAU. COPUOS began studying this topic in 2017 within the framework of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee and has now approved a long-term action plan until 2029. IISL outlined its vision in 2023 in its final report and submitted a review of it to the Legal Subcommittee of COPUOS in 2024. At the same time, the authors came to the conclusion that there is no direct goal to develop an international regime that takes into account the interests of all parties today. Also, issues related to the rights of indigenous peoples regarding access to the sky are not discussed in the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee at the proper level. At the same time, the article emphasizes the important role of international organizations in solving the problem and substantiates the need to develop a special legal regime with an emphasis on human rights issues.

Modern constitutional law is faced with the need to rethink the traditional hierarchy of norms in the context of the transnationalization of legal regulation. The leading challenge to the classical model of law and order is the integration of jus cogens norms, peremptory norms of international law that have the highest legal force and universal obligation. These norms begin to play the role of a kind of transcendent criterion that affects the limits of the permissibility of both legislation and constitutional reforms. This problem is particularly acute in countries with a formalized doctrine of the supremacy of the constitution, where jus cogens begins to compete with fundamental national norms. The appeal to them in the practice of constitutional courts and international instances demonstrates a shift from a vertically sovereign to an axiologically oriented model of law. The examples of Germany, Italy, France, and Colombia indicate the emergence of more flexible, polycentric legal structures in which jus cogens is interpreted as an integral part of the constitutional order. The subject of the study is the transformation of the hierarchy of legal norms and institutions under the influence of jus cogens in the context of the emerging global legal order. The methodological basis of the research includes legal hermeneutics, axiological analysis and a comparative legal approach. These methods make it possible to identify how the structure and logic of constitutional regulation is changing in the context of the interaction of national and international law. An institutional approach has also been applied to evaluate regulatory conflict resolution mechanisms. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the interpretation of jus cogens not only as an international category, but also as the axiological limit of national lawmaking. In the context of the erosion of the classical normative pyramid, a post-hierarchical model is being formed, in which jus cogens becomes a normative reference point that does not fit into the previous framework of sovereignty. This requires not the abandonment of national constitutionalism, but its conceptual renewal. The conclusions of the study are focused on the development of the idea of a legal dialogue between different levels of normativity, including the possibility of quasi-constitutional coexistence of jus cogens and national foundations. It has been established that models allowing for such coordination are already being implemented in a number of legal systems. The proposed concept can be used as a basis for further doctrinal and institutional transformations. The article contributes to the formation of a new ontology of global constitutionalism.