Intelligence bodies of the state in the mechanism of ensuring the constitutional rights and freedoms of man and citizen: international standards and legislation
Authors: Voloshyn Yuriy , Proschayev Vladimir 
Published: September 2021

The place and role of state intelligence bodies in the mechanism of ensuring constitutional rights and freedoms of man and citizen according to international standards and in the light of the newly adopted Laws of Ukraine «On the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine» and «On Intelligence» are studied.
It is proved that in Ukraine, as in other post-Soviet states that did not have intelligence legislation, but began to create it after the declaration of independence, the process of constitutional and legal regulation of intelligence agencies consisted of four stages (transitional, initial, basic and modern). Describing each stage, the authors stressed that the Ukrainian legislator is now in the fourth stage, which is characterized by the improvement of already adopted legislation on intelligence activities or the adoption of completely new laws based on new versions or amendments to constitutions (basic laws).
It is emphasized that Ukraine has been one of the first states in the territory of the former USSR to adopt the fourth (modern) stage since the adoption of new legislative acts on the activities of intelligence agencies. Undoubtedly, the impetus for this was the amendment of the Constitution of Ukraine on the strategic course of the state to become a full member of Ukraine in the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which radically changed the direction and direction of intelligence use of available forces and means.
It is noted that the newly adopted legislation was developed not out of thin air, but based on a set of already adopted regulations that fully reflect the complex threatening situation around Ukraine and clearly indicate the place of intelligence agencies in a single system of national security. It was necessary to summarize all the adopted preliminary normative material and summarize it in new legislative acts, which would in a new way regulate all issues of intelligence functioning in modern difficult conditions.
The main positive points in the newly adopted laws are identified, namely: 1) granting categories that were previously used only in the theory of intelligence, the status of legal categories, which indicates the beginning of the process of forming a completely new set of special legal terms; 2) inclusion in the text of a separate article on the observance of human rights and freedoms in the conduct of intelligence activities; 3) inclusion in the Law of Ukraine «On Intelligence» of a separate section on the peculiarities of democratic civilian control over intelligence; 4) granting the right to intelligence agencies to conduct intelligence affairs.
It is proposed to consider in the Ukrainian legislation some legal provisions of the legislation of European countries regarding parliamentary control, which, according to the authors, will significantly increase the effectiveness of control.
It is substantiated that the Law of Ukraine «On Intelligence» should contain:
- a list of principles of intelligence activities must be defined;
- the obligation of the authorized judge of the court to draw up a decision on the refusal to grant permission to conduct an intelligence event is more correctly formulated;
- the right of intelligence agencies to provide training, retraining and advanced training of persons involved in confidential cooperation, in the manner prescribed by law for intelligence officers, is more clearly defined.
It is concluded that the newly adopted laws provide comprehensive guarantees of compliance with the provisions of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 1950 and fully reflect the needs of intelligence agencies in the legal regulation of their activities in modern conditions.