Vol 27, No 3 (2023)

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the vulnerability of each country, regardless of the economic well-being and health system development, highlighting the need for further rethinking of the global security and human security concepts. The need to sustain the spread of infectious diseases, as well as the treatment of life-threatening diseases, determine the relevance of scientific research on all key aspects related to the development of technologies, both by states and non-state actors. In view of the efforts made over the past decades, significant advances have been made in the field of biotechnology, which allows to detect the vulnerability of viruses, as well as to influence the genes responsible for the development of diseases. Such trends not only contribute to ensuring the human right to health and the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress, but also bring humanity closer to executing Sustainable Development Goals. The reverse side of the scientific research increase is the expansion of the availability of scientific data, as well as the simplification of the reproduction of various technological solutions, which leads to the risk of their use for military and terrorist purposes. The development of technologies, the use of which can not only counteract life-threatening diseases, but also create new threats to human security, has influenced the formation of the term “dual-use technologies” in the scientific literature and documents of international organizations. The article presents a systematic analysis of biotechnologies impact on the formation of “human security” concept, as well as the definition of “biological security” concept. The authors consistently consider international treaties, as well as documents of international intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations in the field of regulating the circulation of technologies that pose a threat to state security. Special attention is paid to the consideration of the features of control over the spread of biological agents in the context of the activities of the European Union, as well as ensuring the implementation of the national security strategy of the Russian Federation.

The methodology of legal science in Latin America has common features with the global trends in the development of the methodology of legal research; at the same time, there are features of the development of legal thought and legal understanding that have a cultural and historical nature. The purpose of the study is to consider certain areas of the methodology of Latin American legal science. Philosophical and legal thought in Latin America develops within the framework of jusnaturalism and positivism and various variants of these theories. Latin American legal science is characterized by an appeal to customary Indian law, and its elements are included in the current legal systems of Latin American countries (legal pluralism). In the focus of the Latin American legal doctrine, law appears as a social phenomenon, a cultural phenomenon and part of social philosophy. The development of information technologies, their introduction into lawmaking and legal proceedings, the creation of machine-readable law raises the question of further ways of developing law and legal thought in two areas - technical improvement and traditional reflection on social processes in the humanitarian science.

Inclusion of the clause on the oath at naturalization in the Federal Law “On Citizenship of the Russian Federation” in 2017 makes understanding of historical experience of such an institution in Russia in the past, relevant. The paper is an attempt of comparative legal study of the modern institution of the oath at naturalization and similar institutions that existed in the Ancient Rus’, Moscow state, Russian Empire. It is emphasized that for a long time the institution of the oath was not formaly established; however, it was established at first in relation to natives of Eastern countries, while the oath of Europeans who accepted a Russian citizenship was not regulated in form and content. Authors raise the question to what extent the historical traditions of our country were taken into account in the development of the modern oath of Russian citizenship. To answer this question, the basic elements of the institution of the oath including terms of adjuration, ceremonial, content and legal formalization have been examined. The study is mainly based on the formal-legal, historical-legal and comparative-legal methods.

The relevance of this issue is caused by its understudied nature: in a small number of works there are only fragmentary notes about the landmark events of the government policy in Kalmyk uluses of Astrakhan oblast in the late 19th - early 20th century: the management transfer of Kalmyk uluses to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the administrative reform of 1910. The influence of the reform of 1892 in Kalmykia on changes in the management system is in the focus. The issue is also actualized by the necessity to attract new and varied record-keeping sources. The purpose of the work is quite specific: to present a detailed description of administrative-territorial changes in Kalmyk steppe on the basis of a wide range of archival records, which we are introduced into scientific circulation for the first time. The study is based on the application of culture and civilization and interdisciplinary approaches, which, combined with the principles of historicism, system analysis and objectivity, allows to create a reliable picture of administrative and territorial transformations in a specific region with a traditional way of life. The content of the administrative and territorial policy in Kalmyk uluses was the "routine" activity of the administration, self-government bodies and officials in initiating, preparing and making decisions. The completed milestone events were the reform of 1892, the transfer of Kalmyk administration to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the administrative reform of 1910. During the period under study, the government tried to carry out administrative and territorial transformations in Kalmyk uluses as an important part of the general, including social and land, reorganization of Kalmyk society. However, this large-scale plan was only partially implemented due to stability of the civilizational and cultural features of Kalmyk society. The government was forced to limit itself to some streamlining of the activities of local governments, transferring the administration of the Kalmyks to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, creating zargos (courts) in all uluses, and enlarging Kalmyk aimaks and khotons by the 1910 reform.

The study explores the Russian and international experience of using such forms of electronic voting in elections as with the help of a special device (complex) for electronic voting at a polling station (in a voting room, or another specially defined place), and remote electronic voting through a personal computer or a mobile device. The article analyzes the circumstances and conditions that contribute to the development and consolidation of electronic voting in the country's legislation, or, conversely, the conditions that lead to suspension or even rejecting electronic technologies from the electoral process at the state level. Up-to-date information on the use of electronic technologies in the elections has been examined. The stages, problems, and difficulties of introducing electronic voting technologies in elections, as well as directions for further improvement of electronic voting in countries that have chosen the path of long-term development of digitalization of the electoral process are highlighted. In the early 2000s, many countries of the world gained experience in the practical use of electronic technologies in elections. However, the scientific and technological achievements so far did not provide the necessary degree of voters' confidence in the security of the electronic voting system or any reliable result. The prejudice towards electronic voting technologies, as well as high-cost modern electronic systems for implementation, persist in many countries to this day. This is an objective obstacle to the widespread use of electronic technologies in the electoral process. At the same time, the experience of remote electronic voting in Russia and Estonia, the fragmentary inclusion of electronic voting in electoral procedures in a number of other countries, and the widespread use of electronic voting complexes show that electronic technologies in elections are already a reality.

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are one of the most significant solutions that can fundamentally change both public relations and the sphere of public legal relations. The goal of the present research is to conduct a comparative analysis of existing approaches to the AI integration into the sphere of public legal relations of foreign countries and Russia, with the subsequent determination of the most effective constructive approaches to the formation of a regulatory policy regarding AI in Russia. This goal is achieved through the study of the following issues: Strategic goal-setting in relation to AI in Russia and other countries; Tactical implementation of AI integration into public legal relations and possible solutions in order to ensure AI decision-making transparency; Model compensatory measures that ensure AI safe integration into public relations in Russia. The object of the study comprises regulatory sources, strategies, and other documents regulating the AI integration into the sphere of public legal relations in Russia and foreign countries, judicial practice examples, and academic publications on the issues under study. The research methodology incorporates a complex of modern philosophical, general scientific, special scientific methods of cognition, including dialectical, systemic, structural-functional, hermeneutic, comparative legal, formal legal (dogmatic), legal modeling methods, and some others. The present research lays special emphasis on the implementation of a comparative legal study of the approaches to and regulation of AI in the public sphere regarding various states experience. The general scientific dialectical method has made it possible to consider the AI position in the legal field from the point of view of the AI regulation variability and trends in the subsequent development thereof, and to substantiate the advantages and disadvantages of various approaches to solve the respective issues, as well. Additional emphasis is also laid on addressing the issues of the applied nature of the AI use in the field of public relations in Russia, taking into account the legal modeling and development of compensatory measures within the authorities’ regulatory approaches.

The study is devoted to the legal regulatory framework and its forms of manifestation. The material is based on the analysis of certain provisions of labor legislation. Labor legislation is the joint jurisdiction of the Russian Federation and its constituent entities and combines simultaneously several levels of legal regulation, namely federal, regional, local and others. Further research of the theory of framework legal regulation involves an analysis of the forms of its manifestation in particular branches of law. Legal regulatory framework is built on the legal norms that set certain limits of legal regulation, while their specification depends on the discretion of the law enforcer. In labor legislation, there are norms of different degrees of certainty. The logical constructions of individual legal norms of labor legislation are characterized by certain uncertainty. Legal uncertainty provides for the right to the subjects of legal relationship or the law enforcer to act at their own discretion. It seems relevant to investigate the properties of relatively determinate norms of labor legislation, and to analyze the specifics of the legal regulatory framework mechanism, based on the analysis of judicial practice.

The article focuses on the conditions and grounds for conducting the formal preliminary legal due diligence of a contract as to respect of the preemptive right, which had been granted by one of the parties to a stranger under an agreement. This legal due diligence may be hypothetically examined during state registration of rights or notarization of transactions. According to theory of law, reasons to do thus are scientific concepts of the general duty not to interfere with others' plans. Such plans may include an agreement under the terms of which one of the parties gets a preemptive right in relation to certain property. This contractual right ensures the entitled party that he/she may preclude the legal implications of agreements between the other party and the strangers (interveners). If these persons knew or should have known of the preemptive right and entered into an agreement, which is inconsistent with that right, such agreement shall be considered as invalid and therefore cannot be notarized and cannot be subject to state registration

This study considers the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic - announced by the WHO in March 2020 - on law enforcement, crime, and mental health of population, including vulnerable groups (children and adolescents, prisoners, health care workers). The authors use an interdisciplinary research approach, including comparative legal, historical, and formal-legal methods. Anti-epidemic measures aimed at curbing the global spread of the virus and interrupting its transmission routes are described on examples from several countries. The legal basis for such measures consists mainly of legal acts of executive authorities and decisions of local authorities, taken in accordance with national laws in the field of prevention and control of infectious diseases and response to emergencies. The authors discuss in detail the legal instruments used in countering the pandemic in the Russian Federation, including changes and amendments to the legislation on administrative offences and criminal law. The global crisis caused by the pandemic offers examples of effective actions taken by states, but also shows weaknesses in the organization of health care, including functioning of health care workers “on the front line” of fight against the pandemic. The international system for responding to dangerous infections has also underperformed, prompting discussions on the need for an international legal instrument to combat pandemics. Empirical studies have found that the pandemic, combined with restrictive measures, led to increased levels of stress, anxiety and depression, alcohol and other psychoactive substances use among the population, gave rise to new types of illigal behavior and negative dynamics in a number of already known criminal offenses. Therefore, criminologists need to pay attention to changes in the structure and dynamics of crime, conditions that contribute to them, as well as new factors of victimhood.

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