Ukrainian Border Guard

, Dorozhno-patrulnaya sluzhba, abbr. ДПС, DPS), Russian Traffic Patrol Service

The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGS; uk, Державна Прикордонна Служба України, ''Derzhavna Prykordonna Sluzhba Ukrayiny''; abbr. ДПСУ, ''DPSU'') is the border guard of Ukraine. It is an independent law enforcement agency of special assignment, organized by the Constitution of Ukraine as a military formation, the head of which is subordinated to the President of Ukraine.

The Service was created on July 31, 2003, after the reorganization of the State Committee for Protection of the State Border. During wartime, units of the State Border Guard Service fall under the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The State Border Guard Service includes the Ukrainian Sea Guard, which is the country's coast guard. It is also responsible for running Temporary Detention Centres, in which refugees are held.

History

Ukrainian border guards are the national successors of the Soviet Border Troops. They were formed from the approximately 17,000 Border Troops located in Ukraine in 1991. The organization was first titled the "Ukrainian Border Troops", which was later subordinated to the "Ukraine's State Committee for State Border Guarding".

From 1991 to at least 1993, the new borders with Russia and Belarus were not guarded; the Border Troops were only deployed along the western borders (minus Moldova) and on the Black Sea. Another 9,000 personnel were added to the Border Troops at the expense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and, by the end of 1993, border posts were established in the north along the Russian and Belarusian borders. In 1999, the authorized strength of the force was again increased to 50,000.

In 2003, new legislation was adopted, and this somewhat changed the legal status of the institution. In March 2003, the Border Troops became the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, and its status was legally changed from 'military formation' to 'special law-enforcement body.' The force was legally granted 50,000 personnel, including 8,000 civilian employees.

On 4 July 2012, a State Border Guard Service Diamond DA42 aircraft failed to make its scheduled radio contact with ground units. A Search and rescue mission revealed that the plane had crashed into a wooded mountainous area in Velykyi Bereznyi Raion, killing all 3 crew members on board. A further investigation was launched.

During The War in Donbas on August 31, 2014, two Sea Guard Zhuk class patrol boats were struck by land-based artillery. In June 2, a border base in the outskirts of Luhansk was besieged by a troop of Luhansk People's Republic separatists. The Siege of the Luhansk Border Base resulted in 10 wounded Border Guards until they surrendered and withdrew.

In 2022, during the Battle of Snake Island 13 Border Troops were attacked and captured by Russian warships. A unit of Border Guards was stationed in Mariupol and fought during the Siege of Mariupol. In 20 April, the Border Guards were stranded in an encircled pocket at the Mariupol sea port together with National Police of Ukraine, until they were rescued by the Azov Regiment and retreated into the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works.

Structure

Components

* Ground Forces
* Sea Guard
* Aerial support

Directors (Commanders) of the Border Guard Service (Border Troops)

* 2019–present Serhiy Deyneko
* 2017-2019 Petro TsyhykalPoroshenko appoints Head of Operations Department Tsyhykal as State Border Service chief
Interfax-Ukraine (25 July 2017)
* 2014-2017 Viktor Nazarenko
* 2001-2014 Mykola LytvynPresident appoints Nazarenko as new border chief
Interfax-Ukraine (23 October 2014)
* 1999-2001 Borys Oleksiyenko
* 1994-1999 Viktor Bannykh
* 1991-1994 Valeriy Hubenko

Units

;Main Administrations
* West Region (Lviv)
**Lviv border detachment
**Mostyska border detachment
**Mukacheve border detachment
**Chop border detachment
**Chernivtsi border detachment
**Clinic-hospital (Lviv)
**Canine Training Center (Velyki mosty)
* North Region (Zhytomyr)
**Chernihiv border detachment
**Zhytomyr border detachment
**Lutsk border detachment
* East Region (Kharkiv)
**Odessa border detachment
**Kotovsk border detachment
**Mohyliv-Podilsky border detachment
**Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky border detachment
**Izmail border detachment
**Odessa Sea Guard detachment
**Odessa separate aviation squadron
**Izmail training detachment of Sea Guard
**Clinic-hospital (Odessa)
* Azov-Black Sea Region (Simferopol), reorganized due to the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea
**Simferopol border detachment (moved to Kherson)
**Berdiansk border detachment
**Kerch Sea Guard detachment (moved to Mariupol)
**Yalta Sea Guard detachment (disbanded)
**Sevastopol Sea Guard detachment (moved to Odessa)
* Separate controlled border checkpoint "Kyiv"
* 10th Mobile border detachment

Supporting institutions

* Separate Guard and Support Command
* Main center of Communication, Automatization, and Information Protection
* Information Agency
* Main center of supporting development programs
* Main Forensic Centre
* State Archives
* Training center
* Science research institute
* Khmelnytskyi National Academy
* Central museum
* Central hospital
* Clinical sanatoriums: Prykordonyk, Arkadia
* Children health center Pryberezhny
* Center of health and recreation Pishchane
* Academic ensemble of song and dance
* Sports Committee

Temporary Detention Centres

*Pavschino (Military Unit 2142)Council of Europe Anti-Torture Committee visits Ukraine
accessed 21-08-07

Military ranks

Uniform

File:Знак Прикордонна служба України-800x800.jpg, Patch
File:Прикордонної служби України-800x800.JPG, Cockade
File:Прикордонна служба на зимову шапку пластик-800x800.JPG, Officers cocarde
File:Прикордонна служба на берет пластик-800x800.JPG, Privates cocarde

Long Service Medal

File:Медаль «Ветеран служби» (ДПСУ).png, 25 years in service
File:Медаль «20 років сумлінної служби» (ДПСУ).png, 20 years in service
File:Медаль «15 років сумлінної служби» (ДПСУ).png, 15 years in service
File:Медаль «10 років сумлінної служби» (ДПСУ).png, 10 years in service

Equipment

See also

*Border control
*State Border of Ukraine
*Security Service of Ukraine
*List of national border guard agencies

References

External links

Official website

Agency's history page on official website

{{War in Donbas

Border protection
Borders of Ukraine