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

State Border Guard Service of Ukraine headquaters 2

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 Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

. It is an independent law enforcement agency of special assignment, organized by the

Constitution of Ukraine The Constitution of Ukraine ( uk, Конституція України, translit=Konstytutsiia Ukrainy) is the fundamental law of Ukraine. The constitution was adopted and ratified at the 5th session of the '' Verkhovna Rada'', the parliament ...

as a military formation, the head of which is subordinated to the

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...

. 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 , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly know ...

. The State Border Guard Service includes the

Ukrainian Sea Guard The Ukrainian Sea Guard ( uk, Морська охорона, Morska okhorona; full name uk, Морська охорона Державної прикордонної служби України, , Sea Guard of the State Border Guard Service of ...

, which is the country's

coast guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

. It is also responsible for running Temporary Detention Centres, in which

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

s are held.

History

Ukrainian border guards are the national successors of the

Soviet Border Troops The Soviet Border Troops (russian: Пограничные войска СССР, Pogranichnyye voyska SSSR) were the border guard of the Soviet Union, subordinated to the Soviet state security agency: first to the '' Cheka''/OGPU, then to NK ...

. 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". The Ukrainian border guard guards the international border with Belarus

The Ukrainian border guard guards the international border with Belarus

From 1991 to at least 1993, the new borders with

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

were not guarded; the Border Troops were only deployed along the western borders (minus

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnist ...

) and on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...

. Another 9,000 personnel were added to the Border Troops at the expense of the

, 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. Ukrainian Border Guard post shelled by Russian missiles in the Kiev region near the border with Belarus (3)

Ukrainian Border Guard post shelled by Russian missiles in the Kiev region near the border with Belarus (3)

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 Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

mission revealed that the plane had crashed into a wooded mountainous area in

Velykyi Bereznyi Raion Velykyi Bereznyi Raion ( uk, Великоберезнянський район) was a raion of Zakarpattia Oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the urban-type settlement of Velykyi Bereznyi Velykyi Bereznyi ( uk, Вели ...

, killing all 3 crew members on board. A further investigation was launched. During The

War in Donbas War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regula ...

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 Luhansk (, ; uk, Луганськ, ), also known as Lugansk (, ; russian: Луганск, ), is a city in what is internationally recognised as Ukraine, although it is administered by Russia as capital of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). ...

was besieged by a troop of

Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk or Lugansk People's Republic (russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, ; abbreviated as LPR or LNR, rus, ЛНР) is a disputed entity created by Russian-backed ...

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 Mariupol (, ; uk, Маріу́поль ; russian: Мариу́поль) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast ( Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Prior to the 2022 Russi ...

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 The Special Operations Detachment "Azov" (), also known as the Azov Regiment ( uk, Полк «Азов», translit=Polk "Azov") and formerly the Azov Battalion ( uk, батальйон «Азов», translit=Batalion "Azov"), is a unit of the ...

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 The Interfax-Ukraine ( uk, Інтерфакс-Україна) is a Kyiv-based Ukraine, Ukrainian independent news agency founded in 1992. The company does not belong to the Russian news corporation Interfax Information Services. The company pub ...

(25 July 2017) * 2014-2017

Viktor Nazarenko Viktor Nazarenko ( uk, Віктор Олександрович Назаренко, be, Віктар Назаранка; born 5 March 1956, in Minsk) is a Ukrainian military leader, Soviet veteran of the Afghan war (1979–89) and doctor of militar ...

* 2001-2014 Mykola LytvynPresident appoints Nazarenko as new border chief

(23 October 2014) * 1999-2001

Borys Oleksiyenko Borys is a name of Bulgarian origin, equivalent to the Bulgarian-derived spelling Boris. It may refer to: * Borys Baranets (born 1986), professional Ukrainian football midfielder who plays for FC Lviv in the Ukrainian Premier League *Borys Buryak ...

* 1994-1999

Viktor Bannykh Viktor Bannykh ( uk, Віктор Іванович Банних; June 28, 1949 – August 14, 2003) was the commander of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine , Dorozhno-patrulnaya sluzhba, abbr. ДПС, DPS), Russian Traffic Patrol Service ...

* 1991-1994 Valeriy Hubenko

Units

;Main Administrations * West Region (

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukra ...

) **Lviv border detachment **Mostyska border detachment **Mukacheve border detachment **Chop border detachment **Chernivtsi border detachment **Clinic-hospital (

) **Canine Training Center ( Velyki mosty) * North Region (

Zhytomyr Zhytomyr ( uk, Жито́мир, translit=Zhytomyr ; russian: Жито́мир, Zhitomir ; pl, Żytomierz ; yi, זשיטאָמיר, Zhitomir; german: Schytomyr ) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the administrative ...

) **Chernihiv border detachment **Zhytomyr border detachment **Lutsk border detachment * East Region (

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrat ...

) **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 Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrat ...

) * Azov-Black Sea Region (

Simferopol Simferopol () is the second-largest city in the Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and is considered the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. However, it is u ...

), 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

References

External links

Official website

Agency's history page on official website
{{War in Donbas Border protection Borders of Ukraine