CIVIL PROTECTION OF THE POPULATION IN THE SYSTEM OF NATIONAL SECURITY OF UKRAINE UNDER MARTIAL LAW

Abstract

Within the framework of this article, a comprehensive analysis is carried out of the content of such scientific categories as public security, civil defense, and civil protection, considered through the prism of ensuring the national security of the state. Particular emphasis is placed on the fact that, under the conditions of the full-scale war ongoing in Ukraine since 2022, the key priorities of state policy in the security sphere are increasingly concentrated around the categories of “public security” and “public order.” It is these categories that serve as fundamental reference points for shaping effective mechanisms to respond to contemporary threats. The study establishes that the content of these categories primarily encompasses the protection of vital interests of both the individual and society as a whole. This includes ensuring the rights and freedoms of human beings and citizens, the safeguarding of which is defined as a priority area of activity for security forces, state authorities at various levels, local self-government bodies, as well as their officials and representatives of civil society. In this regard, particular importance is attached to the coordination of actions among these actors aimed at implementing and protecting national interests from the impact of both internal and external threats. At the same time, an essential component is ensuring an adequate level of protection of state sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the democratic constitutional order. This presupposes the state’s capacity to effectively counter both military and non-military challenges, which may be either actual or potential in nature. It is also emphasized that threats to the national security of Ukraine should be interpreted as a set of phenomena, trends, and factors that complicate or even render impossible the realization of national interests, as well as the preservation of fundamental national values. It is substantiated that the system of public security, along with its structural elements, cannot function as a static construct. On the contrary, it must remain flexible, capable of adaptation and transformation depending on the current situation both at the national level and within its individual sectors. In addition, it is necessary to take into account the probable dynamics of the development of threats and trends that shape the contemporary security environment. Such an approach makes it possible to reinterpret the category of public security in Ukraine as a state of protection of the vital interests of the individual, society, and the state from socially dangerous acts and the consequences of emergency situations. This, in turn, leads to an expansion of the substantive content of the public security system. The organization and practical implementation of civil protection measures are logically incorporated into its structure, forming an integral component of the overall security architecture of the state. Accordingly, civil protection is no longer viewed as an isolated domain but is integrated into the broader context of ensuring national security. In conclusion, it is determined that the transformation processes currently taking place in Ukrainian society in the sphere of the formation and implementation of state policy on civil protection of the population have significant practical implications. The incorporation and adaptation of international experience, taking into account national specificities, contribute to increasing the effectiveness of the functioning of the civil protection system. This is particularly relevant in the context of modern challenges and threats that directly affect the state of Ukraine’s national security.