Instituto de Estudios Políticos y Derecho Público "Dr. Humberto J. La Roche"
de la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas de la Universidad del Zulia
Maracaibo, Venezuela
Publicación cientíca en formato digital
ISSN-Versión Impresa 0798-1406 / ISSN-Versión on line 2542-3185
Depósito legal pp 197402ZU34
ppi 201502ZU4645
Vol.40 N° 74
2022
Recibido el 15/07/22 Aceptado el 26/08/22
ISSN 0798- 1406 ~ De pó si to le gal pp 198502ZU132
Cues tio nes Po lí ti cas
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de Es tu dios Po lí ti cos y De re cho Pú bli co “Dr. Hum ber to J. La Ro che” (IEPDP) de la Fa-
cul tad de Cien cias Ju rí di cas y Po lí ti cas de la Uni ver si dad del Zu lia.
En tre sus ob je ti vos fi gu ran: con tri buir con el pro gre so cien tí fi co de las Cien cias
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ti ga do res; es ti mu lar la in ves ti ga ción en es tas áreas del sa ber; y pro pi ciar la pre sen ta-
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avan ces o re sul ta dos de in ves ti ga ción en las áreas de Cien cia Po lí ti ca y De re cho Pú bli-
co, los cua les son so me ti dos a la con si de ra ción de ár bi tros ca li fi ca dos.
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cul tad de Cien cias Ju rí di cas y Po lí ti cas. Ins ti tu to de Es tu dios Po lí ti cos y De re cho Pú bli co
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com ~ loi chi ri nos por til lo@gmail.com. Te le fax: 58- 0261- 4127018.
Vol. 40, Nº 74 (2022), 565-584
IEPDP-Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas - LUZ
The role of the international
institutions in the protection of
human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46398/cuestpol.4074.31
Ivo Svoboda *
Oksana Epel **
Susanna Suleimanova ***
Dmytro Ievenko ****
Olha Kovalova *****
Abstract
The need for qualitative changes in the eld of national
security also requires the transformation of international
institutions responsible for the protection of human rights and
freedoms. Therefore, the aim of the article was to identify the
role of international institutions in the protection of human rights and
freedoms in the eld of national security. The main methodological tools
were the observational method and the comparative legal method. There
is currently a dynamic increase in the number of international treaties
ratied in the eld of human rights. International institutions are making
many eorts to achieve the highest level of eciency of adequate protection
mechanisms. The authorization of an illegal war exposes states to
prosecution in international courts. Everything leads to the conclusion that
the competence capacity of institutions seems to be limited in the face of
increasing violations of human rights in many regions of the world, which
leads to the need to reform international legal instruments and relevant
procedures for the protection of human rights and freedoms in the eld of
national security.
* Associate Professor, guarantor of security management studies, AMBIS, a.s. Vyská škola, 18000,
Prague, Czech Republic. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0941-4686
** Doctor of Juridical Science, Judge of Doctor of Juridical Science, 01010, Kyiv, Ukraine. ORCID ID:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4400-7808
*** PhD in Law, Assocciate Professor of the Department of Civil Procedure, National University «Odessa
Law Academy», 65125, Odessa, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3958-5558
**** PhD in Law, Head of the Department of state and law sciences and public management, Faculty 4,
Donetsk State University of Internal Aairs, 25015, Kropyvnytskyi, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.
org/0000-0002-4286-0629
***** PhD in Law, The head of the Department The head of the Department, Faculty № 3, Donetsk State
University of Internal Aairs, 25015, Kropyvnytskyi, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-
0003-4555-0172
566
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
Keywords: security ecosystem; supranational bodies; security crisis;
cross-border threats; political consensus.
El papel de las instituciones internacionales en la
protección de los derechos humanos y las libertades en el
ámbito de la seguridad nacional
Resumen
La necesidad de cambios cualitativos en el ámbito de la seguridad nacional
exige también la transformación de las instituciones internacionales
encargadas de la protección de los derechos humanos y las libertades. Por
tanto, el objetivo del artículo fue identicar el papel de las instituciones
internacionales en la protección de los derechos humanos y las libertades
en el ámbito de la seguridad nacional. Las principales herramientas
metodológicas fueron el método de observación y el método jurídico
comparado. Actualmente existe un aumento dinámico en el número de
tratados internacionales raticados en el ámbito de los derechos humanos.
Las instituciones internacionales están haciendo muchos esfuerzos para
lograr el más alto nivel de eciencia de los mecanismos de protección
adecuados. La autorización de una guerra ilegal expone a los Estados a ser
procesados en tribunales internacionales. Todo permite concluir que la
capacidad competencial de las instituciones parece estar limitada ante el
aumento de las violaciones de los derechos humanos en muchas regiones del
mundo, lo que lleva a la necesidad de reformar los instrumentos jurídicos
internacionales y los procedimientos pertinentes para la protección de los
derechos humanos y las libertades en el ámbito de la seguridad nacional.
Palabras clave: ecosistema de seguridad; organismos supranacionales;
crisis de seguridad; amenazas transfronterizas;
consenso político.
Introduction
In the last decade, there has been an increase in geopolitical disagreements
around the world, conicts are becoming global in nature with the
involvement of regional and world “participating countries”. Tensions and
social unrest are increasing, as well as the threat of militarized conicts,
extremism, and terrorism. A new type of terrorism – cyberterrorism – is
spreading, which is the convergence of terrorism and cyberspace. The fears
of bioterrorism and the risks of mutating pathogens have increased due to
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Vol. 40 Nº 74 (2022): 565-584
international mobility, which leads to the need to introduce the necessary
national and supranational means of prevention/limitation of the spread of
diseases with pandemic potential and other cross-border threats to health
(Bengtsson and Rhinard, 2019).
Global geopolitical transformations also produce an increase in the
number of information threats. The development of information and
communication technologies has exacerbated the problems of national
security for the states. Disinformation has become more widespread,
according to which unfriendly countries use military and diplomatic
means in combination with activities in the information space to achieve
the desired results. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has come to be
seen as an infodemic, where a lot of credible but misleading information
spread rapidly over the Internet (Sługocki and Sowa, 2021). As a result,
maintaining global security has become a top priority for all countries (UN.
Secretary-General, 2022a).
Modern international threats require states to strengthen their national
security policy aimed at the protection of the individual, society, and the state
against internal and external threats, which ensure the realization of the
constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens, decent quality and standard
of living, sovereignty, independence, state, and territorial integrity (Alwan,
2020). Governments around the world have adopted national security
policies to address a growing range of risks and vulnerabilities, including
climate change, cybercrime, terrorism, and threats to infrastructure,
industry, and the media (Heath, 2020).
However, to preserve national security, it is necessary not to deviate
from the universal values of human rights and fundamental freedoms (Hill,
2020). In the modern world, the opposite trends have become characteristic
of the international protection of human rights and freedoms (Peters and
Askin, 2020). There is an increase in the number of ratications of human
rights treaties, international legal instruments, and relevant procedures.
There is also an increase in human rights violations around the world. The
space for the exercise of basic freedoms is signicantly narrowing. In 2021,
only 3.1% of the world’s population lived in countries with “open” civic
space (CIVICUS Monitor, 2021).
In democratic countries, national law is based on international laws.
This testies to the international legal basis of national security, which
determines the regulation and protection of state and national values and
interests. However, at the international level, there is no universal single
document that could establish standards for the protection of human rights
and freedoms in the sphere of national security (Chizhov, 2022). Also, the
eective implementation of the decisions of international human rights
bodies remains a serious problem (Sandoval et al., 2020).
568
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
Considering the above, the purpose of the article is to examine the
current role of international institutions in the protection of human rights
and freedoms in the sphere of national security. Considering the outlined
goal, the following research tasks were set: 1) to summarize the main types
of international institutions and the corresponding mechanisms for the
protection of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security;
2) to reveal the current eectiveness of the mechanism for the protection
of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security in Ukraine
given the activities of international institutions.
1. Literature Review
The work of Mantu (2019), dedicated to the overview of key international
and regional human rights institutions, global and regional treaties,
as well as political agreements and documents that do not have binding
force, became the basis for the article. The work of Chizhov (2022) also
inuenced the formation of the author’s position on the researched topic, as
the scholar conducted a comprehensive analysis of the theoretical and legal
foundations of the implementation of international standards for ensuring
human rights in the sphere of national security.
The article by Morris (2020) established the relationship between national
security and human rights by considering some practical implications of
public policy. The study has considered the works of Morton and Maeselin
(2020), dedicated to the main principles of modern international law
aimed at strengthening international security regimes and scientic works
of Alwan (2020) on the systematization of scientic approaches to the
concept of “national security” and Gilder (2021) on the conceptual basis of
human security, the possibility of responding to a changing world, and the
corresponding reorientation of international rights.
The scientic works of Hill (2020), Drobotov (2020) emphasize the need
to balance civil liberties and national security with the help of international
institutions.
Particularly noteworthy are the scientic studies by Sandoval et al.
(2020), Peters and Askin (2020), which emphasize the need to introduce
innovative means of monitoring and promotion of dialogue by supranational
human rights bodies.
An active study of the relevant problem conrms the fact that special
attention should be paid to the current state and further development of
international institutions in the mechanism of protection of human rights
and freedoms in the sphere of national security. Therefore, conducting the
research according to these new criteria is state-of-the-art and relevant.
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2. Methods
As shown in Figure 1, the article used such modern methods of cognition,
as formal-logical, historical, systemic, comparative, analytical, statistical,
and concrete-sociological (research documents). It should be emphasized
that 40 sources were reected in the work.
Figure 1. The structure of the phased research. Source: Own elaboration.
The methodological base of the study is represented by the dialectical
method, which allowed comprehensive and objective consideration of the
problems of legal relations of international institutions and states regarding
the protection of the citizens’ rights from threats to national security.
The main research method, used in the study, was the observation
method, which helped to reveal the author’s perception of the essence and
content of legal relations between the studied international institutions
and to analyses the protection of citizens’ rights in the sphere of national
security in Ukraine. The comparative legal method made it possible to
570
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
reveal the inability of international institutions to inuence the protection
of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security and to
conrm the need to reform the entire ecosystem of international security
and protection against armed aggression.
The following methods were also used: legal modeling (modeling the
development of legal relations of states and international institutions),
observation (study of modern trends in the development of current
international and national legislation in the sphere of national security,
and the activities of legal entities), formal logic (dierent theories
and hypotheses of the further building relationships between states,
international institutions, and their partnerships were singled out),
hypothetical-deductive (can be seen throughout the article and in the
conclusions), etc.
3. Results
The protection of human rights was recognized as the goal and task of
the United Nations in the UN Charter of 1945 (United Nations, 1945). In
December 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was
adopted by the UN General Assembly resolution (UN General Assembly,
1948). In December 1966, the UN General Assembly adopted the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR,
1966) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR,
1966). At the same time, the UDHR and these two Covenants became
known as the International Bill of Human Rights.
The UN human rights mechanism consists of many components, the
purpose of which is to protect human rights around the world. There are
relevant contractual and statutory mechanisms. Statutory bodies assess
compliance by all UN member states with their obligations in the sphere of
human rights by the UN Charter. Treaty bodies monitor the implementation
of the core international human rights treaties by the State parties. The
composition of treaty committees on human rights includes independent
experts who monitor compliance with the obligations imposed by the main
international treaties on human rights.
These committees include Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination, Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural rights,
Human Rights Committee, Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women, Committee against Torture, Committee on the Rights of
the Child, Committee on Migrant Workers, Subcommittee on Prevention of
Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Committee on
Enforced Disappearances.
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All committees carry out periodic inspections of states’ compliance
with the provisions by the procedure based on the periodic submission
by the State parties of a report with a detailed description of all measures
taken during the reporting period to fulll the obligations contained in
the treaty. After reviewing the report, the relevant committee issues its
“Concluding Observations”: a set of recommendations aimed at improving
the implementation of these obligations.
Condential investigations, which can only be conducted concerning
State parties that have recognized the competence of the relevant committee
in this regard, should be initiated upon receipt of reliable information
on any serious or systematic violation of the rights guaranteed by the
treaties they are monitoring. General comments or recommendations
are interpretations by committees of provisions of human rights treaties,
specic topics, or methods of their work.
Regarding the statutory mechanisms, the UN adopts resolutions on
various issues related to this goal, as well as establishes and monitors the
work of various auxiliary mechanisms. These include the Universal Periodic
Review (UPR) process and special procedures of the UN Human Rights
Council. The UPR is a mechanism through which human rights provisions
in all UN member states are reviewed every ve years.
Special procedures may have thematic or geographic mandates. Mandate
holders are special rapporteurs, independent experts, or working groups
consisting of ve members appointed by the Human Rights Council. They
can receive information about specic claims of human rights violations
and send urgent appeals or letters of accusation. The Oce of the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is responsible for coordinating
eorts to promote and protect human rights. It provides research, technical
expertise, and logistical support to facilitate the work of the Human Rights
Council and other statutory bodies.
This universal human rights system coexists with regional systems:
African, Inter-American, and European human rights protection systems.
Relevant judicial bodies (for example, the African Court on Human and
Peoples’ Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the European
Court of Human Rights (2022) are constantly operating in specic regions.
Although the same rights are often protected by one or more universal
treaties and regional treaties, the victims cannot simultaneously or
sequentially seek protection from more than one mechanism concerning
the same human rights violation.
An example of this is Article 35.2. (b) of the ECHR (European Court of
human rights, 1950), according to which an application, which is essentially
the same as a case that has already been referred to another procedure of
international investigation or settlement procedure and does not contain
572
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
new information, will be considered inadmissible by the European Court of
Human Rights.
The international documents on security, developed under the
leadership of the European Union, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, the
United Nations, and the IAEA contain relevant standards. Control over
their implementation is carried out by the Committee of Ministers of the
Council of Europe, which monitors the implementation of the decisions of
the European Court of Human Rights under the provisions of the European
Convention on Human Rights (Article 46(2) of the Convention) (European
Court of human rights, 1950).
Figure 2. Components of the national security of the state (developed by the
authors as a result of observation).
Currently, we can talk about variable components of national security
(Figure 2) and, accordingly, variable threats (Figure 3).
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Vol. 40 Nº 74 (2022): 565-584
Figure 3. The main threats to national security in the context of globalization (in
the authors’ point of view).
Threats to national security can come from foreign governments
with hostile intentions, such as direct military actions and aggression,
espionage, and election interference. Countries may also face the threat
of terrorism, including biological terrorism. Activities of an “enemy State”
to accumulate chemical weapons stockpiles, develop nuclear potential, or
otherwise increase its destructive capabilities are qualied as a threat to
national security. In modern conditions, cybercrime is especially dangerous
for national security, as it is aimed at hacking the websites of economic
institutions, and governmental or energy infrastructures. For example,
in Ukraine, as of June 30, 2022, 796 cyber-attacks were carried out
(Government portal of Ukraine, 2022a).
The main sectors, targeted by hackers, are Government and local
authorities – 179, the security and defense sector – 104, the nancial
sector – 55, commercial organizations – 54, the energy sector – 54, and
others – 350. The most common methods include collecting information
by the attacker, malware code, and intervention. An important threat to
national security is a transnational crime, uncontrolled migration, ethnic
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Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
and religious conicts, pandemics, and climate change (it can also be
considered a threat to national security, as the corresponding long-term
eects can lead to environmental disasters).
In turn, a universal system of collective security was created within the
framework of the United Nations. The UN Security Council is currently
responsible for maintaining international peace and security and takes all
appropriate actions for both protection of human rights and the prevention
of their violation (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Functions and powers of the UN Security Council regarding the
protection of human rights in the sphere of national security.
An example is the developed recommendations on international
behaviour related to international and national security, namely the
resolutions on the Threats to International Peace and Security Caused
by Terrorist Acts, Non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and Nuclear
Disarmament, Crimes of Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships, Human
Rights and Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism.
The UN General Assembly has developed 15 draft resolutions and
decisions in the eld of disarmament, including 2 decisions on cyberspace
security (UN. First Committee, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic revealed
the need for intensication of work in the eld of economic, social, and
cultural rights to eectively assist all countries in their promotion and
protection and to address inequalities in the recovery from the COVID-19
pandemic (UN Secretary-General, 2022).
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International standards for the protection of human rights in the sphere
of national security consist of mandatory and recommendatory components.
Mandatory standards are enshrined in ratied universal international
treaties and take precedence over the norms of national legislation and must
be applied by state courts in case of contradictions between them. Based on
the resolutions, countries have developed appropriate national plans for
national security. Thus, in 2020, the European Commission developed the
EU Security Union Strategy (European Commission, 2020) to protect EU
citizens and promote the European way of life.
The strategy covers the period from 2020 to 2025 and focuses on four
strategic priorities and key actions in which the EU can help member states
to strengthen security by adhering to European values and principles: a
future-proof security environment, tackling evolving threats, protecting
Europeans from terrorism and organized crime and a strong European
security ecosystem. The NATO military-political bloc remains the guarantor
of national sovereignty and the power of EU member states to resist external
threats.
Currently, the national security of Ukraine, legally established at the
national level (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, 2018), has acquired a special
signicance. Modern state policy in the sphere of national security and
defense is aimed at protecting the people and citizens, their life and
dignity, constitutional rights and freedoms, and safe living conditions. The
main principles determining the formation of state policy in the sphere
of national security and defense include the rule of law, accountability,
legality, transparency, and compliance with the principles of democratic
civilian control over the security and defense sector, compliance with the
norms of international law, participation in international eorts to support
peace and security, etc. The priority of the security policy and the foreign
policy of Ukraine now is integration into the European Union in the context
of entering the established security system in the region.
On June 23, 2022, the leaders of 27 EU member states decided to
grant Ukraine EU candidate status (Government Portal of Ukraine,
2022b). Further preparation for membership will involve the completion
of transformation in the country, which will adjust living conditions in
Ukraine according to the principles of the EU and its laws aimed at the
protection of the rights and freedoms of every citizen (Ocial journal of the
European Union, 2012).
Representatives of international institutions, to ensure the mechanism of
protection of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security,
monitor the situation in the states that have signed and ratied them. The
main purpose of such actions is the observance of rights and freedoms, the
provision of consultative, organizational, and judicial protection of human
rights and freedoms. The situation in Ukraine can serve as an example of
576
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
law enforcement practice: on February 25, 2022, the UN Security Council
failed to adopt a draft resolution on ending the Ukraine crisis, as Russia
vetoed the resolution.
On March 2, 2022, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted
a resolution demanding that the Russian Federation immediately end its
invasion of Ukraine and withdraw all troops (UN. General Assembly, 2022).
The text contains a call for an immediate peaceful settlement of the conict
through political dialogue, negotiations, mediation, and other peaceful
means. At the same time, such a resolution turned out to be declarative and
conrmed the urgent need to revise the concepts of international security
protection.
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU)
has been active since 2014 at the invitation of the government of Ukraine.
Special attention was paid to the situation in the conict zone with the
Russian Federation in the east of Ukraine and the Autonomous Republic
of Crimea. On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation announced the
start of a military special operation in Ukraine, despite the actual waging of
the aggressive war. The HRMMU continues to monitor the impact of this
situation on human rights throughout the country. As of 24:00 00:00 on July
3, 2022 (local time), the Oce of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded 11,152 civilian casualties in the
country: 4,889 killed and 6,263 wounded (OHCHR, 2022).
Most recorded civilian casualties resulted from the use of explosive
weapons with wide area eects, including heavy artillery shelling and
MLRS raids, as well as missile and air strikes. Heavy ghting and large-scale
hostilities led to mass displacement of the civilian population, which had
serious consequences for the exercise of their rights, particularly economic
and social ones. The Oce of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees reported that more than 4.81 million people had left the country
by June 10, and the International Organization for Migration indicated that
more than 7 million people had been internally displaced (IOM, 2022).
The OSCE launched its special monitoring mission for Ukraine in March
2014 at the request of the Ukrainian government and by consensus decision
of all 57 OSCE participating States. The mandate of the OSCE Special
Monitoring Mission expired on March 31, 2022, and consensus regarding
its extension was not reached due to the position of the Russian Federation.
Four nuclear power plants in Ukraine (Zaporizhzhya NPP, Rivne NPP,
South-Ukraine NPP, and Khmelnytska NPP) have 15 operating reactors.
Accordingly, the IAEA has developed a comprehensive assistance program
to reduce the risk of a major nuclear accident (IAEA, 2022) and sent to
Ukraine three integrated missions on security, physical security, and
safeguards data. The IAEA continues technical attempts to resume the
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transmission of remote safeguards data to the IAEA headquarters from the
Zaporizhzhya NPP, which ceased on May 30, 2022.
On February 28, 2022, the ECtHR received a request from the
government of Ukraine to take protective measures regarding the inter-state
complaint. As a result, the Court instructed the Government of the Russian
Federation to refrain from military attacks on the civilian population and
civilian objects, including with the use of any types of prohibited weapons,
to immediately ensure the safety of medical institutions and emergency
rescue services within the territories attacked or surrounded by Russian
troops.
Also, by its obligations under the Convention, especially concerning
Articles 2, 3, and 8 (European Court of human rights, 1950), the Russian
Federation must ensure unhindered access of the civilian population to safe
evacuation routes, medical assistance, food, and other basic needs, quick
and unhindered passage of humanitarian aid. The Russian Federation
ignores completely ECtHR decisions.
On March 16, 2022, the UN International Court of Justice issued a ruling
on taking temporary measures in the case Ukraine v. Russia (International
Court of Justice, 2022). In ling the case, Ukraine stated that the Russian
invasion of Ukraine is based on a false claim of genocide. Given the lack of
evidence of Russia’s accusations of genocide and the principle that any action
to prevent genocide must be taken in good faith and under international
law, the Court ordered Russia to immediately cease hostilities.
The question of Russia’s participation in the proceedings is still open.
The International Court of Justice has set the following deadlines for the
submission of written documents: September 23, 2022, for Ukraine’s
memorial; March 23, 2023, for the counter-memorial of the Russian
Federation (UN. Secretary-General, 2022b).
On March 16, 2022, the Council of Europe decided to exclude Russia
from the Council of Europe with immediate entry into force (Council of
Europe, 2022). The Russian Federation will cease to be a High Contracting
Party to the ECHR on September 16, 2022 (ECtHR Decision, March 22,
2022). In turn, the ECtHR is considering the Interstate Case “Ukraine v.
Russia” (X) (application No. 11055/22) (ECtHR, 2022), which concerns
the statements of the Government of Ukraine about massive and gross
violations of human rights committed by the Russian Federation during
armed aggression on the territory of Ukraine from February 24, 2022.
On June 23, 2022, the ECtHR received a completed complaint form in the
case. The case alleges that the Russian Federation illegally invaded Ukraine
and that its invasion and occupation of Ukraine continues. According to the
Ukrainian government, the Russian Federation is responsible for numerous
violations of the ECHR (European Court of human rights, 1950) and
578
Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
carried out targeted, non-selective and groundless attacks on civilians and
their property throughout the territory of Ukraine, violating all norms of
international law. Currently, the ECtHR is considering ve more interstate
complaints of Ukraine against the Russian Federation and about 8,500
individual complaints related to the events in Crimea, eastern Ukraine, and
the Sea of Azov.
The given examples of the implementation of mechanisms for the
protection of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security in
the example of Ukraine testify to the declarative nature of the international
institutions. The described situation requires an urgent reform of both
international institutions themselves and approaches to ensuring the
national security of States.
4. Discussion
The growth of international communication between countries remains
the key to the development of international institutions governed by laws
and rules (Mantu, 2019). The institutional structure of supranational
human rights bodies and the characteristics of the respondent states are key
variables inuencing the results (Hillebrecht, 2017). In the conditions of the
gradual weakening of the regulatory hegemony of the State, international
judicial institutions go beyond their limited function of a simple dispute
settlement mechanism and become law-making bodies (Torbisco-Casals,
2022).
The right to national security conrms its social value as a regulator of
social relations, and strategic communications for the protection of national
interests while fullling the State’s international obligations, ensuring the
protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms (Bogutsky, 2020).
However, there must be a compromise between human rights and legitimate
collective goals, such as the survival of the community and its security from
external or internal threats (Torbisco-Casals, 2022).
Interference with human rights and freedoms must be provided for by
law, pursue a legitimate goal, and be necessary for society (Binder, 2018).
But where national security intersects with human rights abuses at the
national level, international human rights law is weak (Morris, 2020).
Human rights and freedoms are the highest priority for the development
of a democratic state, but they can be limited in the interests of national
security (Drobotov, 2020).
Cross-border threats of violence, encroachment on health, and
environmental crises are challenges to national security, which can aect
people’s daily lives (Gilder, 2021). National legal systems of dierent
579
CUESTIONES POLÍTICAS
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nature led to dierences in the actual results of the implementation of the
same international requirements, as a result of which the international
platform for responding to security challenges has not been implemented
yet (Chizhov, 2022).
There are many shortcomings in the work of international institutions
in the mechanism of protection of human rights and freedoms (Sandoval
et al., 2020). First, some monitoring tools (such as questions during status
reports) are used inconsistently in practice. Secondly, there is constant non-
compliance by states with various procedures. Treaty bodies often require
the State concerned to provide a written report on the implementation of
the recommendations within a specied period – usually within six months
of notication of the recommendations by the treaty body.
However, States do not always adhere to these agreements. Third,
supranational bodies are not provided with sucient human and nancial
resources to monitor and facilitate the implementation of their decisions
(Sandoval et al., 2020). Also, international institutions should act more
actively than react to the protection of human rights. There must be a well-
thought-out and sound policy for the prevention of human rights violations
(Mantu, 2019).
The willingness of some states to use force indicates that the legal
prohibition on the use of force may be weakening which makes it necessary
to develop more supranational provisions on human rights in the sphere of
national security, as well as to expand the opportunities to bring violators to
justice (Morton and Maeselin, 2020). However, the search for an alternative
to the UN Security Council will not take place shortly (Subramanian, 2022).
Conclusion
The doctrines of human rights and freedoms inuenced international
law and became an impetus for the creation of global and regional
institutions. The development of new technologies and communication
networks removes barriers, but it also leads to the emergence of new
problems, risks, and threats. By helping to improve the international
system of human rights, the relevant international institutions act as multi-
level and complex structures. Regional systems are the main elements of
international protection of human rights.
One of the most important principles of national security in every
modern democratic state is the rule of law. The main vector should be aimed
at balancing the guarantees of observance of human and citizen rights and
freedoms in the national security system in general.
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Ivo Svoboda, Oksana Epel, Susanna Suleimanova, Dmytro Ievenko y Olha Kovalova
The role of the international institutions in the protection of human rights and freedoms in the
sphere of national security
As a result of the invasion of the Russian Federation on February
24, 2022, millions of Ukrainians were deprived of their basic rights
and freedoms: the right to decide their fate, freely choose their political
status, and engage in their economic, social, and cultural development.
International organizations make a lot of eorts to protect human rights
and freedoms in the sphere of national security, but the readiness of some
states to use force against other states indicates a weakening of the legal
prohibition of the use of force.
The implementation of international mechanisms for the protection
of human rights and freedoms in the sphere of national security by
international institutions is hindered by the sovereignty of the modern
state, which makes international law advisory, not mandatory. Increasingly,
the decisions of international institutions are becoming declarative, which
conrms the lack of eective protection of rights and requires further
reform of the global security ecosystem of states with the consolidation of
eective mechanisms for the protection of human rights and freedoms.
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