Ministry of Internal Affairs (Ukraine)

This article is about the Ukrainian internal affairs ministry. For pre-2015 law enforcement agency, see Militsiya (Ukraine).

Ministry of Internal Affairs (Ukraine)

Міністерство внутрішніх справ України
200px Insignia of the ministry
Agency overview
Preceding agency	Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs
Type	Government ministry
Headquarters	vul. Akademika Bohomol'tsya 10, Kiev
Motto	Безпека народу - найвищий Закон
Employees	152,000
Minister responsible	Arsen Avakov
Deputy Minister responsible	Ekaterina Zguladze, First Deputy Minister
Parent department	Government of Ukraine
Website	mvs.gov.ua

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Міністерство внутрішніх справ України, Ministerstvo vnutrishnikh sprav Ukrayiny, MVS) executes state policy for the protection of rights and liberties of citizens, investigates unlawful acts against the interest of society and state, fights crime, provides civil order, ensures civil security, traffic safety, and protects the security and protection of important individuals. It is a centralised agency headed by a Minister of Internal Affairs. The ministry closely operates with the office of General Prosecutor of Ukraine. It oversees the National Police of Ukraine (police service) and the National Guard of Ukraine (gendarmerie).

Formerly, the Ministry directly controlled the Ukrainian national law enforcement agency, termed the militsiya (Ukrainian: міліція). This changed in July 2015, with the introduction of reforms by Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko to reduce corruption, whereby the militsiya was replaced with the National Police. Ukraine's militsiya was widely regarded as corrupt, and it has received severe accusations of torture and ill-treatment.

History

Name

• People's Committee of Internal Affairs of the Ukrainian SSR (1919 - 1930, regional autonomous agency)
• State Political Directorate of the Ukrainian SSR (1930 - 1934, part of the Joint State Political Directorate of USSR)
• People's Committee of Internal Affairs of the Ukrainian SSR (1934 - 1946, part of the People's Committee of Internal Affairs of USSR)
• Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Ukrainian SSR (1946 - 1991, part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of USSR)
• Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine (since 1991, a government agency of the independent Ukraine)

History of Militsiya

Main article: Militsiya (Ukraine)

Ministers of Internal Affairs

Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Міністр внутрішніх справ України
Incumbent Arsen Avakov since February 22, 2014
Appointer	President of Ukraine
Term length	Duration of the presidential term (5 years) or less due to earlier resignation or dismissal by the President
Inaugural holder	Andriy Vasylyshyn
Formation	August 24, 1991
Succession	First Deputy Minister

See also: List of former interior ministers of Ukraine

The Minister of Internal Affairs directs the ministry. Prior to the 2015 police reform, the Minister was recognised as the head of the militsiya. Many former ministers have previously had experience of serving in the police, and many were, prior to taking up their posts, generals of the militsiya. Typically the Minister was afforded the rank of Colonel-General of the Militsiya upon taking up his post in the Ukrainian government. Yuriy Lutsenko and Vasyl Tsushko are the only former holders of the office who had never served in any law enforcement agency.

List of Ministers of Internal Affairs of Ukraine

Name	From	Until	President	Notes
Andriy Vasylyshyn	August 24, 1991	July 21, 1994	Leonid Kravchuk	First post-independence minister
Volodymyr Radchenko	July 28, 1994	July 3, 1995	Leonid Kuchma	Acting July 21–28, 1994
Yuriy Kravchenko	July 3, 1995	March 26, 2001	Leonid Kuchma	Involved in 'Eagles of Kravchenko' case
Yuriy Smirnov	March 26, 2001	August 27, 2003	Leonid Kuchma
Mykola Bilokon	August 27, 2003	February 3, 2005	Leonid Kuchma
Yuriy Lutsenko	February 4, 2005	December 1, 2006	Viktor Yushchenko	First civilian minister
Vasyl Tsushko	December 1, 2006	December 18, 2007	Viktor Yushchenko	First minister never directly subordinate to the president
Yuriy Lutsenko	December 18, 2007	January 28, 2010	Viktor Yushchenko	Acting January 28-March 11, 2010 In May 2009 first deputy (Interior) Minister Mykhailo Kliuyev served as acting Minister during a seven-day investigation. After that Lutsenko resumed the post.
Anatoliy Mohyliov	March 11, 2010	November 7, 2011	Viktor Yanukovych	First post-Orange revolution minister
Vitaliy Zakharchenko	November 7, 2011	February 21, 2014.	Viktor Yanukovych	Former head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine
Arsen Avakov (acting)	February 22, 2014	February 27, 2014	Oleksandr Turchynov (acting)
Arsen Avakov	February 27, 2014		Oleksandr Turchynov (acting), Petro Poroshenko

The minister of Internal Affairs is responsible directly to the Prime Minister of Ukraine, to the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) and ultimately the President of Ukraine. His office is located in Kiev's Pechersk District.

See also

• Berkut (Ukrainian police)
• Prosecutor General of Ukraine
• Security Service of Ukraine
• Internal Troops of Ukraine

References

• How Top Spies in Ukraine Changed the Nation's Path by K.J.Chivers of the New York Times
• How the Gongadze Case Has Been Investigated (June 2005 Ukrayinska Pravda article on the history of the Gongadze Case investigation) (Ukrainian)
• The Key Witness in the Gongadze Case Dead (March 2005 Ukrayinska Pravda article on the death of Kravchenko, analysing also his role in the Gongadze case - includes fragments of the Melnychenko recordings) (Ukrainian)

Further reading

• Full collection of laws of the Russian Empire since 1649. Vol.5. Saint Petersburg, 1830. page 13. (Полное собрание законов Российской империи с 1649 г. - Спб., 1830. - Т. 5. - С. 13)

External links

• Official website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine (Ukrainian)
• Ukraine Police Twitter
• Overview of MVS' special units (Russian)
• How to Avoid Problems with Ukrainian police (English)