FORCE MAJEURE CIRCUMSTANCES: PERFORMANCE OF CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS DURING THE PERIOD OF ARMED AGGRESSION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION ON THE TERRITORY OF UKRAINE

Abstract

The armed conflict that broke out in our country on February 24, 2022 was officially recognized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine as force majeure. Since then, the life of every Ukrainian has changed radically. Small and medium-sized businesses have not escaped these changes, most of which have not yet recovered from the coronavirus pandemic. Force majeure is a circumstance due to which it is objectively impossible to fulfill the obligations undertaken earlier. The list of circumstances in which force majeure occurs, according to national law - is not exhaustive, but we will consider the force majeure that occurs due to armed aggression, martial law, hostilities, mobilization and more. According to the national legislation of our state, when concluding any transaction, in particular, a contract, the parties to such a transaction may provide for certain circumstances, which, in their opinion, due to their unpredictable nature, may be grounds for release from obligation, and subsequently from economic or civil liability. Scholars have seldom studied certain reasons, which in one way or another limit the fulfillment of certain commitments. The article deals with force majeure circumstances, in particular, such as martial law, war, military mobilization, etc., which arose for business entities due to the armed aggression of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine. The article examines the procedure for notifying business entities of their counterparties regarding the impossibility of fulfilling their obligations due to force majeure. It is determined that it needs a detailed description and proof for the correct notification of the onset of force majeure. The practical situation is considered that not all circumstances due to which it is impossible to fulfill the obligations can be considered force majeure. In addition, it must be remembered that force majeure circumstances are released only from liability for violation of the fulfillment of an obligation, but in no case release from the fulfillment of an obligation and is not an automatic basis for termination of an obligation.