Legal Regulation of Changes in the Territory of the Russian Federation as a Factor of National Security

History teaches that any territorial changes pose a threat to national security, even if these territorial changes occur within the borders of one state. At the same time, a change in state borders may lead not only to a complication of international relations, but also to an increase in socio-political tension within the country. Therefore, it is extremely important that this process has a pre-established legal framework that would minimize the risks associated with changing the territory of the state. Thus, the subject of this publication is the legal order and experience of changing the territory of the Russian Federation, including the accession of new subjects of the federation to Russia in 2014 and 2022. The publication notes that the gap established by the constitutional legislator in terms of changing territorial borders has not been filled in full. Currently, only the procedure for joining new subjects of the Russian Federation has been established and there is no procedure for separating subjects or territories from the Russian Federation. The absence of a procedure for the withdrawal of the territory from Russia, in fact, deprives the latter of such an opportunity, which ensures the stability of the country's territory and its security. At the same time, the procedure for joining new subjects of the Russian Federation is regulated in detail and includes almost all the highest state authorities in the process of making the appropriate decision. The publication proves compliance with international legal norms in the implementation of the process of the entry of new subjects of the federation into Russia, including relying on the declarative theory of the emergence of states. The author proves the admissibility and legality of national procedures for the accession of new subjects to the Russian Federation. The authors propose to expand the use of direct democracy when new subjects join the Russian Federation.