ABSTRACT
Purpose: The study is devoted to clarifying the system of law enforcement agencies of Ukraine in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime, determining the directions of transformation of individual agencies in order to improve the efficiency of their activities in this area.
Methods: The methodological basis of the study was general philosophical and general scientific methods of learning phenomena and processes: theoretical generalization, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, systematization, analogy, systematization, generalization, bibliometric analysis, modeling.
Results and discussion: It was established that economic crimes are threats to the economic security of the state, consisting in the implementation of illegal economic activity (economic processes, relations, operations) or violation of requirements for legal economic activity to satisfy the selfish interests of a person or a group of persons. The specific features of economic crime prevention and counteraction entities that implement the law enforcement function in Ukraine as a component of economic security in conditions of sustainable development are highlighted. The procedure and forms of interaction of law enforcement agencies in the specified area under martial law conditions have been determined. Proposals were made to the legislation to increase the efficiency of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine as an analytical law enforcement agency in countering economic criminal offenses.
Implications of the research: This research has theoretical and applied significance. From the theoretical side - to determine the essence and content of economic crime, to clarify the system of law enforcement agencies of Ukraine in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime. From a practical point of view, proposals of a theoretical, methodological and legislative nature will contribute to the development of the most effective ways of combating crime in this area, will help to understand the place and role of such a law enforcement body with a special status as the Bureau of Economic Security in the specified activity of the state.
Originality/value: The tasks of law enforcement agencies in combating economic crimes in the conditions of martial law and hybrid warfare are becoming extremely important in many countries, as they are aimed at ensuring the financing of defense capabilities and ensuring sustainable development. The author's proposals formulated in the research will contribute to the understanding of economic crime, form an idea about the powers and directions of improvement of the activities of law enforcement agencies in combating crime in this area.
Keywords: Economic Security, Sustainable Development, Economic Crimes, Crime Prevention, Law Enforcement Agencies.
RESUMO
Objetivo: O estudo é dedicado a clarificar o sistema de agências de aplicação da lei da Ucrânia no campo da prevenção e combate ao crime econômico, determinando as direções de transformação de agências individuais, a fim de melhorar a eficiência de suas atividades nesta área.
Métodos: A base metodológica do estudo foram os métodos filosóficos gerais e científicos gerais de aprendizagem de fenômenos e processos: generalização teórica, análise e síntese, indução e dedução, sistematização, analogia, sistematização, generalização, análise bibliométrica, modelagem.
Resultados e discussão: Estabeleceu-se que os crimes econômicos são ameaças à segurança econômica do Estado, consistindo na implementação de atividade econômica ilegal (processos econômicos, relações, operações) ou violação de requisitos para a atividade econômica legal para satisfazer os interesses egoístas de uma pessoa ou de um grupo de pessoas. Destacam-se as características específicas das entidades de prevenção e de combate ao crime econômico que implementam a função de aplicação da lei na Ucrânia como componente de segurança econômica em condições de desenvolvimento sustentável. Foram determinados o procedimento e as formas de interação dos serviços responsáveis pela aplicação da lei na área especificada em condições de lei marcial. Propostas foram feitas para a legislação para aumentar a eficiência do Bureau de Segurança Econômica da Ucrânia como uma agência analítica de aplicação da lei no combate a infrações penais econômicas.
Implicações da pesquisa: Esta pesquisa tem significado teórico e aplicado. Do lado teórico - para determinar a essência e o conteúdo do crime econômico, para clarificar o sistema de agências de aplicação da lei da Ucrânia no campo da prevenção e combate ao crime econômico. De um ponto de vista prático, propostas de natureza teórica, metodológica e legislativa contribuirão para o desenvolvimento das formas mais eficazes de combater a criminalidade nesta área, ajudarão a compreender o lugar e o papel de um órgão de aplicação da lei com um estatuto especial como o Bureau de Segurança Econômica na atividade específica do Estado.
Originalidade/valor: As tarefas das agências de aplicação da lei no combate aos crimes econômicos nas condições da lei marcial e da guerra híbrida estão a tornar-se extremamente importantes em muitos países, uma vez que visam assegurar o financiamento das capacidades de defesa e assegurar o desenvolvimento sustentável. As propostas do autor formuladas na pesquisa contribuirão para a compreensão do crime econômico, forjando uma ideia sobre os poderes e os rumos para a melhoria das atividades dos órgãos de fiscalização no combate ao crime nessa área.
Palavras-chave: Segurança Econômica, Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Crimes Econômicos, Prevenção ao Crime, Agências de Aplicação da Lei.
RESUMEN
Propósito: El estudio se dedica a aclarar el sistema de los organismos encargados de hacer cumplir la ley de Ucrania en el campo de la prevención y la lucha contra la delincuencia económica, determinando las direcciones de transformación de los organismos individuales con el fin de mejorar la eficiencia de sus actividades en esta área.
Métodos: La base metodológica del estudio fueron los métodos filosóficos generales y científicos generales de aprendizaje de fenómenos y procesos: generalización teórica, análisis y síntesis, inducción y deducción, sistematización, analogía, sistematización, generalización, análisis bibliométrico, modelado.
Resultados y discusión: Se estableció que los delitos económicos son amenazas a la seguridad económica del Estado, consistentes en la realización de actividades económicas ilegales (procesos económicos, relaciones, operaciones) o violación de requisitos para la actividad económica legal para satisfacer los intereses egoístas de una persona o un grupo de personas. Se destacan las características específicas de las entidades de prevención y lucha contra la delincuencia económica que aplican la función de aplicación de la ley en Ucrania como componente de la seguridad económica en condiciones de desarrollo sostenible. Se han determinado el procedimiento y las formas de interacción de los organismos encargados de hacer cumplir la ley en el área especificada en condiciones de ley marcial. Se hicieron propuestas a la legislación para aumentar la eficiencia de la Oficina de Seguridad Económica de Ucrania como organismo analítico encargado de hacer cumplir la ley en la lucha contra los delitos económicos.
Implicaciones de la investigación: Esta investigación tiene significación teórica y aplicada. Desde el punto de vista teórico, determinar la esencia y el contenido de la delincuencia económica, aclarar el sistema de los organismos encargados de hacer cumplir la ley de Ucrania en el ámbito de la prevención y la lucha contra la delincuencia económica. Desde un punto de vista práctico, las propuestas de carácter teórico, metodológico y legislativo contribuirán al desarrollo de las formas más eficaces de luchar contra la delincuencia en este ámbito, ayudarán a comprender el lugar y el papel de dicho órgano de aplicación de la ley con un estatuto especial como la Oficina de Seguridad Económica en la actividad especificada del Estado.
Originalidad/valor: Las tareas de los organismos encargados de hacer cumplir la ley en la lucha contra los delitos económicos en las condiciones de la ley marcial y la guerra híbrida se están volviendo extremadamente importantes en muchos países, ya que están destinadas a garantizar la financiación de las capacidades de defensa y garantizar el desarrollo sostenible. Las propuestas del autor formuladas en la investigación contribuirán a la comprensión de la delincuencia económica, forman una idea sobre los poderes y las direcciones de mejora de las actividades de los organismos encargados de hacer cumplir la ley en la lucha contra la delincuencia en esta área.
Palabras clave: Seguridad Económica, Desarrollo Sostenible, Delitos Económicos, Prevención del Delito, Agencias de Aplicación de la Ley.
1 INTRODUCTION
In the modern understanding, human development is positioned with the development of opportunities for the formation of conditions for the socio-economic development of society. On September 25, 2015, the UN General Assembly approved the resolution "Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" (Transforming our World, 2015), which established 17 Sustainable Development Goals. For each of them in the social, economic and environmental spheres, the 2030 Agenda formulates tasks and defines target indicators, which are proposed to be achieved by 2030. During peacetime, Ukraine adapted the global list of tasks and indicators to national development plans, taking into account its characteristics, defining the Goals sustainable development of Ukraine for the period until 2030 (Decree of the President of Ukraine, 2019).
Protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, ensuring its economic and information security, are recognized as the most important functions of the state at the constitutional level (Article 17 of the Constitution of Ukraine) (Constitution of Ukraine, 1996), and their implementation is entrusted to law enforcement agencies. It is the effective work of the relevant law enforcement institutions that should be the key to the organization and management of law enforcement relations in the field of economic security.
Law enforcement agencies occupy a special place in the system of state authorities. Most of the law enforcement agencies (the National Police of Ukraine, the State Border Service of Ukraine, the State Customs Service of Ukraine, the State Bureau of Investigation, etc.), as evidenced by the analysis of their legal status and legislative basis of functioning, together with the ministries form a system of central bodies of executive power, and the main the direction of their activity is the implementation of the law enforcement function, which finds its manifestation in ensuring the rights, freedoms and interests of the individual, countering and fighting against offenses in the relevant field (Yednak, 2019, p. 39).
At the same time, gaps in the regulation of economic relations, lobbying of the interests of specific producers, the low efficiency of anti-corruption measures taken by the state, the lack of a comprehensive legal framework for combating economic crime and other factors lead to the ineffectiveness of anti-criminogenic measures in this area. In addition, the negative trends of economic crime in Ukraine are significantly increased due to the influence of a number of economic, social and political determinants directly related to the war on the territory of Ukraine, unleashed by the Russian Federation (hereinafter - the RF) (Kozar and Popenko, 2021, p. 89-90), which created many obstacles on Ukraine's path to sustainable development.
The tasks of law enforcement agencies in combating economic offenses in the conditions of martial law and hybrid war are extremely important, as they ensure financing of Ukraine's defense capabilities.
Despite the scientific and practical significance of many scientific works, we note the insufficient development of certain problematic issues, in particular: clarifying the content of the concept of "economic crimes"; elucidation of the system of law enforcement agencies of Ukraine in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime; determination of the directions of transformation of law enforcement agencies in order to improve the effectiveness of combating crime in this area. Also, in view of the fact that the Bureau of Economic Security (hereinafter - BES of Ukraine) is a newly created subject of criminal justice in combating economic offenses, there is a need for a thorough scientific study of the peculiarities of the functioning of the specified state law enforcement body with a special status, clarification of normative regulation and the order of its functional activity.
2 METHODOLOGY
Методолопчною основою науково! ctuttî e загальнофшософськ! та загальнонауков! методи шзнання явищ i npopecİB у систем! державного управл1ння та вироблення державно! пол ¡тики протидн економ1чшй злочинност!. Сформований список л!тератури грунтуеться на застосуванн! метод!в б!бл!ометричного анал!зу, систематизацп та теоретичного узагальнення. Методи теоретичного узагальнення, анал!зу та синтезу, систематизацп, групування використан! для обтрунтування теоретичного уявлення та методолопчних положень про зм!ст поняття «економ!чн! злочини», систему правоохоронних орган i в Украши в сфер! запоб!гання та протидн економ!чн!й злочинност!, напрям!в трансформацп д!яльност! правоохоронних орган!в з метою покращення ефективност! протидн злочинност! у цш сфер!. Застосування метод!в шдукцп та дедукцп, аналоги, систематизацп, узагальнення сприяло !дентиф!кацп насл!дк!в економ!чно! злочинност! для безпеки держави. Запропонован! напрями трансформацп д!яльност! окремих державних правоохоронних орган!в з! спец!альним статусом, що реал!зують державну пол!тику в сфер! запоб!гання та протидн економ!чн!й злочинност!, грунтуються на методологи !нституц!йного анал!зу, системного п!дходу, моделювання.
3 DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
3.1 ECONOMIC CRIME AS A THREAT TO THE ECONOMIC SECURITY OF THE STATE
Economic crime has an unconditional impact on the system of economic security of the state, because it is a destructive factor that destroys the system of economic relations at various levels - both from the inside and from the outside. Economic crime is an interdisciplinary category, because it occupies a certain place in the object-subject field of economic, sociological, political, legal and public administration sciences. Most approaches to understanding economic crime interpret the content of economic crime from the standpoint of legal sciences in terms of regulating economic activity and preventing and countering these types of crimes (Dykiy, 2023, p. 131).
The study of economic crimes as criminal and penal self-interested acts is particularly important both from the point of view of their legal characterization, and from the point of view of the formation of tools to prevent and counter their spread to ensure the appropriate level of economic security of the state. This approach characterizes economic crime as a certain motivated act, on the one hand, and an act, the subj ect of which must be punished in accordance with the norms of the legal system, which regulates both the economic sphere and the sphere of crime prevention and counteraction (criminal legislation).
Different approaches to the interpretation of the meaning of the concept of "economic threats" are observed in science, which is explained as follows:
- economic crimes are the object of various branches of law, in particular: economic, land, environmental, administrative, international and criminal. If most industries set the parameters of economic activity and the economic system as a whole, then criminal law characterizes economic crime, actually, from the standpoint of violation of these parameters;
- economic crimes are at the intersection of the interests of the totality of participants in social relations, in particular: enterprises; government agencies; financial and credit institutions; international organizations; NGOs; citizen and group of persons. This means that economic crimes can pose a threat to the activities of each participant, and in general, are a threat to the economic security of the state, which leads to the violation of interests and, as a result, to the lack of social consensus;
- economic crimes are the object of research of a set of sciences, in particular: economic, social, legal, public administration, technical. This contributes to a different understanding of the object-subject field of economic crime definition and, accordingly, to their different interpretation.
Taking into account the peculiarities of this study and the need for a comprehensive approach, we suggest that economic crimes be understood as threats to the economic security of the state, consisting in the implementation of illegal economic activity (economic processes, relations, transactions) or violation of requirements for legal economic activity to satisfy the selfish interests of a person or a group of persons, which leads to an imbalance of the state's economic system, a violation of economic freedom, a decrease in the state's reputation as an international actor, as a result of which the effectiveness of law enforcement, social, defense, and other functions of the state decreases.
This definition has a complex nature, because it has economic, legal and security properties.
The study of the definition of "economic crime" made it possible to identify the following approaches of the authors to this definition: actions in the field of economic relations; criminally punishable selfish acts; intentional self-serving crimes; selfish encroachments; type of crimes; intentional or negligent acts; violation of interests; illegal activity; socio-economic phenomenon; sources of the shadow economy.
3.2 THE SYSTEM OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES OF UKRAINE IN THE FIELD OF PREVENTION AND COUNTERACTION OF ECONOMIC CRIME
The main subjects of the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime are law enforcement agencies and state authorities implementing the law enforcement function. Today, these entities are entrusted with a set of tasks to ensure state security, including economic security. Since 2014, the comprehensive reform of the law enforcement system of Ukraine has been aimed at a complete change of the institutional structure, which was reflected in the transformation of the functions of existing law enforcement agencies and the creation of new ones.
This was also reflected in the economic sphere, in particular through the creation of the State Security Service of Ukraine and the liquidation of the tax police. All this actualizes the problems of studying the activities of law enforcement bodies and state authorities that implement the law enforcement function in the context of the transformation of their tasks, areas of activity and participation in the implementation of the mechanisms of the studied state policy.
In our opinion, the following general features should be identified that characterize the role and importance of law enforcement agencies in preventing and combating crime:
- subjects of implementation of law enforcement functions are bodies of the state executive power, which have state-authority powers in the law enforcement system of the state;
- subjects of implementation of law enforcement functions can act as law enforcement bodies and state authorities that implement law enforcement functions;
- entities implementing law enforcement functions are subject to the central bodies of the executive power, depending on their functional purpose;
- implement one or more law enforcement functions, determined by their purpose and specifics of activity in ensuring law and order, state security, and crime prevention and countermeasures ;
- in their activities, they use the right to use means of coercion and the right of special powers, the level of which depends on the powers of the entity implementing the law enforcement function;
- special requirements for the selection of personnel are applied for staffing the activities of entities implementing law enforcement functions;
- in some cases, they can apply access to state secrets, if this is provided for by their authority, or in some cases there is a one-time access (for example, during the activities of joint investigative teams);
- within the limits of its powers, or in the presence of threats to national security, in general, or economic security, in particular, may limit the rights of citizens;
- in their activities, the subjects of the implementation of law enforcement functions must ensure the coordination of the interests of the participants in social relations.
Regarding the subjects of the prevention and counteraction of economic crime, which implement the law enforcement function in Ukraine, we propose to highlight the following specific features:
- perform functions in the field of detection and investigation of crimes that have an economic purpose or require economic justification. Such subjects are: the National Agency of Ukraine for identification, search and management of assets obtained from corruption and other crimes; Security Service of Ukraine; National Police of Ukraine; National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine; National Agency for Prevention of Corruption; State Bureau of Investigation;
- specific requirements for the personnel composition are used when forming the personnel potential;
- subjects of the implementation of law enforcement functions with the status of special purpose, in particular in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime. These subjects include the BES of Ukraine.
3.3 DIRECTIONS FOR THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE ACTIVITIES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES IN THE CONTEXT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE STATE POLICY OF PREVENTING AND COMBATING ECONOMIC CRIME IN THE SYSTEM OF GUARANTEEING THE ECONOMIC SECURITY OF THE STATE
In the context of the impending problems in Ukraine, caused by the Russian full-scale invasion, there is a need to improve the activities of law enforcement agencies in terms of detecting and investigating war crimes that have both an economic basis and are incriminated as economic.
Accordingly, for the implementation of the above, there is a need for the joint activity of the subjects of the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime and the subjects of the law enforcement system, as a whole. Joint activities of law enforcement agencies in the field of economic crime and general purposes are proposed to be carried out in the context of detection, disclosure and investigation of economic crimes:
- the aggressor state, military personnel, political and social figures, mass media of the aggressor state, which were carried out as a result of a full-scale military invasion of the RF;
- committed by citizens of Ukraine as a result of their collaborative activities, cooperation with the occupying forces and the aggressor state;
- committed by foreign citizens as a result of a full-scale military invasion of the RF;
- the aggressor state, military personnel, political and social figures, mass media of the aggressor state, which were carried out as a result of a full-scale military invasion of the RF and require the establishment of financial and economic ties;
- committed by citizens of Ukraine as a result of their collaborative activities, cooperation with the occupying forces and the aggressor state and require the establishment of financial and economic ties;
- related to treason, requiring the establishment of financial and economic ties.
The joint activity of law enforcement agencies may also concern the establishment, investigation and disclosure of economic cooperation: citizens of Ukraine, business entities of Ukraine, citizens and business entities of other countries (except the RF) with residents of the aggressor state; political figures of Ukraine with residents of the aggressor state.
One of the forms of implementation of law enforcement cooperation, which involves expanding the areas of their activity, is the creation of joint investigative teams for the purpose of investigating crimes that pose a threat to national interests.
For the first time, the issue of creating joint investigative teams to investigate war crimes was proposed by a group of authors of a monograph edited by V. Yevdokymov and D. Hrycyshen. In particular, it is about the creation of the following investigative groups: "1) to create a temporary joint investigative group to investigate crimes committed by politicians, civil servants and law enforcement officers against state sovereignty and integrity, which contributed to the Russian military aggression on February 24, 2022. We propose to involve the Security Service in this group of Ukraine, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, the State Bureau of Investigation of Ukraine and the Security Service of Ukraine. It is necessary to subordinate this investigative group to the President of Ukraine. The head of this group must report to the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine and the specially authorized Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine; 2) create a special investigative group to investigate war crimes committed on the territory of Ukraine by the armed forces of the RF. This investigative group should combine the efforts of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the State Bureau of Investigation of Ukraine. This investigative group should establish cooperation with international bodies authorized to investigate war crimes. Control over the activity is entrusted to the President of Ukraine, the Chairman of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. The head of the investigative group must periodically report to the specially authorized Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine; 3) to create a special investigative group regarding intelligence activities and the search for persons suspected of committing war crimes on the territory of Ukraine and taking measures to present them before the international tribunal in The Hague. To implement the specified functions, it is necessary to attract the resources of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense" (Yevdokimov and Hrycyshen, 2023, p. 287).
In our opinion, it is worth expanding the indicated areas of activity by joint investigative groups:
1) Joint investigative group on the detection and investigation of economic crimes of military servicemen, political and public figures, mass media of the aggressor state and foreign citizens (except the RF), citizens of Ukraine who have been notified of suspicion of treason, which includes to include representatives of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, the National Police and the National Agency of Ukraine for identification, search and management of assets obtained from corruption and other crimes;
2 ) Joint investigative group to identify financial and economic ties of individuals and groups of individuals who cooperated with representatives of the aggressor state, which should include the Security Service of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, the National Police and the National Agency of Ukraine for Identification and Search and management of assets obtained from corruption and other crimes, State Bureau of Investigation, National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine. The creation of the specified investigative groups involves the formation of legal support, which can be implemented through the adoption of the Law of Ukraine "On the Formation, Activity, Support, Management, and Termination of the Activity of Temporary Investigative Groups".
Another form of implementation of the cooperation of law enforcement agencies, which involves expanding the areas of their activity, is the involvement of specialists.
A law enforcement agency may involve specialists from another law enforcement agency if necessary in the investigation of a specific crime. Such directions of cooperation can be: involvement of specialists of the Security Service of Ukraine to identify the economic consequences, motives, traces of crimes that encroach on national interests; the involvement of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine to investigate crimes involving political figures and civil servants;
- shared use of resources. By agreement, law enforcement agencies can jointly use resources that are specific and necessary for the investigation of certain crimes. Usually, the use of joint resources is necessary in the implementation of operational and investigative activities;
- the exchange of information is a special component of the formation of the information and communication system for the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime. This process will be studied in more detail during the development of the information and communication system for the implementation of the state policy of preventing and countering economic crime;
- consulting: law enforcement agencies may provide consultations to other subjects of the implementation of the law enforcement function within the limits of their powers, but with a mandatory indication in the relevant investigative documents.
In accordance with the above, it is necessary to make changes to the provisions regulating the activities of the investigated subjects of the implementation of the law enforcement function on the possibility of establishing cooperation in the above-defined organizational forms.
On the basis of the above, it is possible to draw a conclusion about the improvement of the activities of economic crime prevention and counteraction entities that implement the law enforcement function. In particular, new approaches to the identification of signs of law enforcement agencies in general and special purpose in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime are justified. We also offer the following directions for improving this process:
- provide for secret expenditures for the implementation of special operations; reporting to the specialized committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine; develop a financing mechanism for joint operations; to provide funding for the interaction of law enforcement agencies with international police organizations;
- provide funding for continuous education of law enforcement officers; provide funding for the retraining of law enforcement officers who stop working in the law enforcement system, but are of working age; provide funding for the creation of scientific laboratories; provide for funding of temporary joint investigative interagency groups; provide funding for the study of economic and financial aspects of war crimes. Areas of expansion of the activities of law enforcement agencies are proposed, in particular: the priority areas of joint activity of law enforcement agencies in the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime are defined;
- the form of organization of joint activities of law enforcement agencies in the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime is substantiated. The implementation of the above will allow to increase the effectiveness of the subjects of implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime, as well as to counter modern threats to the national security of Ukraine.
3.4 BUREAU OF ECONOMIC SECURITY OF UKRAINE AS A SUBJECT OF ENSURING ECONOMIC SECURITY
The quintessence of lively long-term discussions among scientists and practitioners regarding the feasibility of creating a single state body responsible for combating economic offenses was the adoption of the Law of Ukraine "On the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine" on January 28, 2021 (On the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine, 2021). As noted in the explanatory note to the aforementioned Law, the reasons for the creation of a new agency - the State Security Service of Ukraine were the decentralization of the function of criminal investigation of economic crimes, which was carried out by the tax police, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the National Police of Ukraine at the same time, that is, the avoidance of duplication of relevant functions in various law enforcement agencies and the absence effect of the investigation of facts of tax evasion (Explanatory note to the draft Law of Ukraine, 2023).
According to the plan of the developers, the creation of the BES of Ukraine is aimed at increasing the efficiency of the activities of law enforcement agencies in the field of the formation and use of the financial resources of the state and its economic security, optimizing the structure and material and technical base of law enforcement agencies, and as a result, helping to reduce the volume of shadow business and increase revenues taxes and fees. Increasing the institutional capacity of the said department at the central and regional levels should ensure immediate detection, investigation and disclosure of economic crimes and guarantee the economic security of the state. In the conditions of the war on the territory of Ukraine, unleashed by the aggressor country, the Security Service of Ukraine should become almost the most important entity responsible for the targeted use of international financial aid, prevention and countering the leakage of funds needed by the state budget to finance defense, social programs and other key government expenditures.
An extremely important component of the law enforcement activity of the Security Service of Ukraine is its analytical component, as opposed to the force, which, according to the legislator's plan, should lead to a reduction of the tax pressure on taxpayers, thereby contributing to the establishment of partnership relations between business and control bodies. In accordance with progressive world trends, combating crime in the economic sphere is based on the ILP model (Intelligence Led Policing), guided by intelligence analytics. The application of the ILP model consists in the systematic collection and evaluation of information using an analytical method, as a result of which the obtained data will be transformed into strategic and analytical products that will support the process of making informed management decisions with actual data (Bezzub, 2018, p. 10). That is, it is about identifying negative trends and criminal schemes without interfering in the functioning of the business and making informed decisions. At the same time, the establishment of a risk-oriented approach to the initiation of criminal prosecution must ensure compliance with the constitutional rights and freedoms of individuals, because criminal proceedings are preceded by analytical activities designed to ensure the balance of relevant procedural decisions.
Information and analytical units (Article 14 of the Law), whose main task is to carry out criminal analysis (Part 1 of Article 21 of the Law) will occupy a prominent place in the structure of the Security Service of Ukraine (On the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine, 2021). According to Art. 22 of the Profile Law, the analytical product is the result of an analytical study of the information and analytical units of BES of Ukraine, which is compiled in writing using the information contained in the information systems of BES of Ukraine and other sources, in particular in statements or notifications about the commission of a criminal offense (On the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine, 2021). The conclusions contained in such an analytical product must necessarily be based on the materials of criminal proceedings and investigative activities, as well as on a comprehensive, complete and impartial study of all risks in the economic sphere.
The inclusion of an analytical component in the activities of the Security Service of Ukraine is considered more relevant than ever at the current stage, because law enforcement activity is characterized not only by its focus on law enforcement as a mechanism for detecting offenses, investigating and making decisions regarding the application of measures of legal responsibility, but also by a variety of forms of influence on potential real threats to the right, such as preventive work.
Therefore, the formation of the BES is an objectively determined and correct direction of improving the state law enforcement policy of ensuring the economic security of Ukraine. Under the condition of proper functioning, the BES of Ukraine should contribute to increasing the level of trust in the activity of the criminal justice system of both ordinary citizens and business representatives, and the minimization of the number of offenses in the economic sphere will depend on the effectiveness of its analytical activity.
At the same time, it should be noted that today in Ukraine there is an extensive system of state bodies in the field of economic security, including law enforcement agencies whose activities are directly aimed at detecting and investigating criminal offenses in the field of economy (National Police of Ukraine, National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, Security Service of Ukraine) or indirectly aimed at ensuring countermeasures against criminal offenses of this category (State Tax Service of Ukraine, State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine, State Customs Service of Ukraine, State Audit Service of Ukraine), and in which the same structural subdivisions function, which are endowed with similar the legal nature of organizational and procedural powers, which negatively affects the effectiveness of their performance of tasks related to combating offenses in the economic sphere (Tarasenko and Starenky, 2021, p. 361-362).
Article 216 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine enshrines for the detectives of the Security Service of Ukraine the authority to investigate offenses, the subject of which is criminal encroachment on relations in the sphere of economic activity. According to the right remark of V. Terekhov, from a formal and logical approach, Chapter VII "Criminal offenses in the sphere of economic activity" of the Criminal Code of Ukraine cannot cover the entire spectrum of relations in the sphere of economic security, because the latter is much broader, and the composition of other crimes, in particular, Art. 191 (Empropriation, waste of property or taking possession of it by abuse of official position) or crimes using official position can pose a much greater threat to economic interests (Terekhov, 2022, p. 30).
The predominance of the powers of the Security Intelligence Service in ensuring economic security in terms of combating the relevant torts is evidenced by the fact that all articles of Section VII of the Criminal Code of Ukraine are attached to them. At the time of execution of this work, Art. Art. 200, 2032, 204, 2051, 206, 212, 2121, 2181, 219, 2201, 2202, 222, 2221,2231, 224,229, 231,232, 2321, 2322,233 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (Criminal Code of Ukraine, 2001). At the same time, in some cases, the said agency is empowered to investigate crimes provided for in Article Art. 191, 2062, 210, 211, 192, 358, 366, 369 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (Criminal Code of Ukraine, 2001).
Despite the individual positive aspects of the implementation of fiscal structural reforms in individual draft laws, they do not mention the transformation of the BES of Ukraine into a single law enforcement agency that will deal with issues of economic crimes and rely on a solid analytical base in its activities. In particular, due to the fact that certain criminal offenses remain under the jurisdiction of the SBU, which are also illegal acts of an economic nature, the said body will continue to investigate them. Their main shortcomings are: imperfect principles of the formation of the competitive commission for the election of the head of the State Security Service of Ukraine; lack of requirements for urgent re-certification of department employees; the absence of provisions regarding the analytical direction in the work of the renewed BES of Ukraine.
According to the explanatory note to one of the draft laws, all economic offenses should be investigated by a single body of pre-trial investigation - 80% of criminal proceedings investigated by the State Security Service of Ukraine continue to be investigated by other bodies, which discredits the main idea of creating the entire department. Thus, as of August 1, 2023, in criminal proceedings registered under the investigative articles of the department, the Bureau directly conducted a pre-trial investigation in only 20% of criminal proceedings, which is an unacceptably low rate of work for a body that is supposed to fight against violations of legislation in the field of economy on the scale of the entire state (Explanatory note to the draft Law of Ukraine, 2023).
Taking into account the improper personnel selection and formal approaches to the formation of personnel of the Security Service of Ukraine, along with numerous facts of non-transparency and ineffectiveness of work in the field of combating criminal offenses, which encroach on the functioning of the economy, both in terms of the analytical component and the law enforcement component in the implementation of new , the risk of targeted approaches to combating offenses, as well as the presence of reports of violations of the laws of Ukraine by officials and officials of the department, the question arises about the urgent need for comprehensive (on the legislative and executive levels) reform of the Security Service of Ukraine (Explanatory note to the draft Law of Ukraine, 2023).
The above proves once again that the legislation in the specified area needs significant revision in order to really "reboot" the BES of Ukraine as an analytical law enforcement body in combating economic criminal offenses. At the same time, the law enforcement component in the fight against offenses in the economic sphere should remain exclusively with the BES of Ukraine, other law enforcement agencies should be completely deprived of it.
Taking into account the suboptimal state institutions that are functioning in Ukraine today, for restarting the National Security Service of Ukraine, experts of the Association of Entrepreneurs and specialists of analytical centers point out with reason the expediency of providing in the legislation only those procedures that have proven their effectiveness in reforming other state bodies (NABU, Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office and the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption), in particular: the formation of an effective competitive commission for the selection of a candidate for the position of the director of the State Bank of Ukraine with the majority of representatives from international organizations; analytical direction in the work of the State Security Service of Ukraine, publicity of the results of its work, responsibility for illegal actions (Prysiazhna, 2024).
In general, sharing most of the arguments expressed, we believe that Ukraine's cooperation in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic offenses should be carried out with the participation of international organizations, but should have a recommendatory nature regarding the formation of the Security Service of Ukraine and the appointment of persons proposed by national organizations to leadership positions.
Therefore, the stated provisions prove that the Security Service of Ukraine is not an exclusive body that exercises law enforcement influence on the protection of the economic security of the state, but is part of the system of relevant entities.
It should be emphasized that the formation of the specified newly created body is accompanied by rapid development of regulatory support for its activities. Therefore, it is quite logical that at the initial stage of the operation of the Security Service of Ukraine it is important to identify and minimize the risks that determine a number of organizational and legal problems of its law enforcement activities in the field of economic security.
The formation of a strong legislative basis for the functioning of the Security Service of Ukraine and the implementation of relevant norms will contribute to the creation of a modern, dynamic body staffed by highly professional specialists, capable of timely identifying and neutralizing threats to economic security, effective protection of the state sovereignty of Ukraine in this area with unwavering observance of fundamental human rights and freedoms and citizen.
Analyzing the provisions of the legislation of Ukraine, which regulates the activity of BES, as well as the point of view of scientists in the specified field, we can highlight its main organizational, legal and procedural shortcomings, which require prompt and balanced steps to eliminate them: the absence of the system-forming concept of "economic security" in the legislation; forms of interaction of the BES with other subjects of ensuring economic security are not distinguished; lack of a standardized mechanism for appointing the head of the State Security Service of Ukraine and his deputies; the lack of rules of jurisdiction of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine; inadequate legal basis for obtaining primary information on signs of criminal offenses; lack of legal regulation of the procedure for recording the results of the information-search and information-analytical work of the BES of Ukraine, the procedure for storing, accounting, using and destroying information obtained as a result of the information-analytical activity of the BES of Ukraine; imperfect regulation of the procedure for the interaction of the Security Service of Ukraine with state financial and law enforcement agencies when obtaining access to their information resources; inadequate quality of judicial control over the agency's activities; legal uncertainty regarding obtaining free access to existing state information systems that contain data on the financial activities of economic entities, state registers of authorities, etc. (Tarasenko and Starenkyi, 2021; Prysiazhna, 2024, p. 363).
This is far from an exhaustive list of issues that are on the agenda for Ukraine in this segment of ensuring the economic security of the state and that require prompt resolution. The BES of Ukraine should be associated with a truly independent body that meets today's requirements for ensuring economic security, takes into account the interests of business entities and Ukraine's obligations to international partners, and the manager who will head it and be responsible for the law enforcement and analytical direction of the unit's activities must to be apolitical and independent from the influence of any state institutions.
4 CONCLUSIONS
The objectivity of the existence of each scientific approach to understanding the category of "economic crime" is beyond doubt. Taking into account the specificity of the study of economic crimes from the standpoint of threats to the economic security of the state in conditions of sustainable development, we offer the following interpretation: economic crimes are threats to the economic security of the state, which consist in the implementation of illegal economic activities (economic processes, relations, operations) or violations of the requirements for legal economic activity to satisfy the selfish interests of a person or a group of persons.
The following specific features of economic crime prevention and counteraction entities, which implement the law enforcement function in Ukraine, are highlighted:
- perform functions in the field of detection and investigation of crimes that have an economic purpose or require economic justification (National Agency of Ukraine for detection, search and management of assets obtained from corruption and other crimes; Security Service of Ukraine; National Police of Ukraine; National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine; National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption; State Bureau of Investigation);
- specific requirements for the personnel composition are used when forming the personnel potential;
- subjects of the implementation of law enforcement functions with the status of special purpose, in particular in the field of prevention and counteraction of economic crime (BES of Ukraine).
The procedure for the joint activity of the subjects of the implementation of the law enforcement function in the context of countering modern threats to economic security in the conditions of sustainable development is proposed, which involves the detection, disclosure and investigation of economic, in particular, war crimes, as well as criminal cooperation: the aggressor state, military personnel, political and social figures, mass media of the aggressor state, committed as a result of a full-scale military invasion of the RF; committed by citizens of Ukraine in the course of their collaborative activities, cooperation with the occupying forces and the aggressor state; committed by foreign citizens during a full-scale military invasion of the RF; of the aggressor state, military personnel, political and public figures, mass media of the aggressor state, committed as a result of a full-scale military invasion of the RF and requiring the establishment of financial and economic ties; committed by citizens of Ukraine during their collaborative activities, cooperation with the occupying forces and the aggressor state and require the establishment of financial and economic ties. Such a joint activity of the entities implementing the law enforcement function is also aimed at clarifying criminal cooperation, financial and economic ties of citizens of Ukraine, business entities of Ukraine, citizens and business entities of other countries (except the RF) with residents of the aggressor state ; political figures of Ukraine with residents of the aggressor state.
Forms of organization of cooperation are highlighted: creation of joint investigative groups; involvement of specialists; shared use of resources; exchange of information, which is a special component of the formation of the information and communication system for the implementation of the state policy of prevention and counteraction of economic crime; consultancy.
Legislation in the researched area needs significant revision in order to really "reboot" the Security Service of Ukraine as an analytical law enforcement agency in combating economic criminal offenses. At the same time, the law enforcement component in the fight against offenses in the economic sphere should remain exclusively with the BES of Ukraine, other law enforcement agencies should be completely deprived of it. The participation of international partners should be of a recommendatory nature regarding the formation of the BES of Ukraine and the appointment of persons proposed by national organizations to leadership positions.
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Abstract
Objetivo: O estudo é dedicado a clarificar o sistema de agências de aplicação da lei da Ucrânia no campo da prevenção e combate ao crime econômico, determinando as direções de transformação de agências individuais, a fim de melhorar a eficiência de suas atividades nesta área. Métodos: A base metodológica do estudo foram os métodos filosóficos gerais e científicos gerais de aprendizagem de fenômenos e processos: generalização teórica, análise e síntese, indução e dedução, sistematização, analogia, sistematização, generalização, análise bibliométrica, modelagem. Resultados e discussão: Estabeleceu-se que os crimes econômicos são ameaças à segurança econômica do Estado, consistindo na implementação de atividade econômica ilegal (processos econômicos, relações, operações) ou violação de requisitos para a atividade econômica legal para satisfazer os interesses egoístas de uma pessoa ou de um grupo de pessoas. Destacam-se as características específicas das entidades de prevenção e de combate ao crime econômico que implementam a função de aplicação da lei na Ucrânia como componente de segurança econômica em condições de desenvolvimento sustentável. Foram determinados o procedimento e as formas de interação dos serviços responsáveis pela aplicação da lei na área especificada em condições de lei marcial. Propostas foram feitas para a legislação para aumentar a eficiência do Bureau de Segurança Econômica da Ucrânia como uma agência analítica de aplicação da lei no combate a infrações penais econômicas. Implicações da pesquisa: Esta pesquisa tem significado teórico e aplicado. Do lado teórico - para determinar a essência e o conteúdo do crime econômico, para clarificar o sistema de agências de aplicação da lei da Ucrânia no campo da prevenção e combate ao crime econômico. De um ponto de vista prático, propostas de natureza teórica, metodológica e legislativa contribuirão para o desenvolvimento das formas mais eficazes de combater a criminalidade nesta área, ajudarão a compreender o lugar e o papel de um órgão de aplicação da lei com um estatuto especial como o Bureau de Segurança Econômica na atividade específica do Estado. Originalidade/valor: As tarefas das agências de aplicação da lei no combate aos crimes econômicos nas condições da lei marcial e da guerra híbrida estão a tornar-se extremamente importantes em muitos países, uma vez que visam assegurar o financiamento das capacidades de defesa e assegurar o desenvolvimento sustentável. As propostas do autor formuladas na pesquisa contribuirão para a compreensão do crime econômico, forjando uma ideia sobre os poderes e os rumos para a melhoria das atividades dos órgãos de fiscalização no combate ao crime nessa área.