CURRENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING PUBLIC POLICY ON FIREARM CIRCULATION IN UKRAINE

Abstract

Purpose. The aim of the article is to form a relevant scientific understanding of the current state of affairs in the regulatory framework for making public policy on firearm circulation in Ukraine. Results. The article contributes to forming a relevant scientific understanding of the current state of affairs in the regulatory framework for making public policy on firearm circulation in Ukraine. The author outlines the regulatory framework for making public policy in this field, the system of which is based on the Constitution of Ukraine (paragraph 4 of the preamble, articles 2, 17 and 27) and a set of laws and by-laws of administrative legislation. A critical analysis of the provisions of the legal regulations makes it possible to argue that the current state of the regulatory framework for making public policy on firearm circulation in Ukraine reveals problems, such as the absence of a special law on firearm circulation (although relevant Draft Laws of Ukraine have been continuously submitted to the national parliament since 1998); a complex of provisions of current legislation on firearm circulation in the State reveals the absence of an appropriate mechanism and reliable guarantees for a number of Ukrainian citizens’ fundamental rights granted to them by the Constitution of Ukraine (first of all, part 2 of art. 27, and part 1 of art. 92); insufficient quality of the legal regulatory mechanism for public relations in the field of firearm circulation. It is established that the regulatory framework for making public policy on firearm circulation in Ukraine consists of a set of laws and by-laws, which can be grouped into a conditional and complex system of regulations determining the legal regime of firearm circulation in the State. Conclusions. The conclusions to the article summarize the results of the study and emphasise that the solution to most of the problems identified is possible through the creation (taking into account the development of scientific thinking on the substance and content of public policy on firearm circulation) of a special legal regulation on firearm circulation in Ukraine (in which civil circulation of firearms will also be legalized), as well as the arrangement (“codification”) of relevant legal regulations.