Introduction: Wartime crime in Ukraine

This Special Issue examines the multifaceted relationship between war and crime through the lens of the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war, addressing a longstanding gap in criminological engagement with armed conflict. While international crimes have drawn increasing scholarly attention, the broader criminogenic effects of war: on social order, ‘ordinary’ crime, legal norms, and institutional responses, remain underexplored. The contributions examine how conflict reshapes violence, norms, and illicit markets; how states expand criminal law during wartime; and how transnational criminality and accountability challenges evolve under geopolitical rupture. Bringing together Ukrainian and international scholars, the issue foregrounds domestic expertise, and advances a more inclusive and interdisciplinary criminology of war, while also highlighting the ethical, methodological, and personal challenges of conducting research during an ongoing war. Collectively, the studies demonstrate the need for a broader criminological perspective capable of capturing the wide-ranging and enduring impact of war on crime, justice, and social order.