Related Rule
Russian Federation
Practice Relating to Rule 3. Definition of Combatants
The Russian Federation’s Military Manual (1990) defines combatants with reference to Article 43(2) of the 1977 Additional Protocol I.
Russian Federation, Instructions on the Application of the Rules of International Humanitarian Law by the Armed Forces of the USSR, Appendix to Order of the USSR Defence Minister No. 75, 1990, §§ 12–13.
The Russian Federation’s Regulations on the Application of IHL (2001) states:
combatants are members of the armed forces of a party to an armed conflict (excluding military medical and military religious personnel).
Combatants have the right to take a direct part in combat operations.
Russian Federation, Regulations on the Application of International Humanitarian Law by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, Moscow, 8 August 2001, § 1.
Without expressly mentioning their non-combatant status, the Report on the Practice of the Russian Federation states that members of the armed forces and military units assigned to civil defence organizations should be respected and protected if their activities comply with the relevant provisions of IHL.
Report on the Practice of the Russian Federation, 1997, Chapter 4.2.
