Fysun Y. International legal regulation of the institute of religious security

3. The thesis is dedicated to the complex analysis of the theoretical and practical aspects of the international legal regulation of the institute of religious security in terms of the up-to-date trends of the law of international security. Religion is one of the fundamental factors in modern international relations. It is taken into account while developing home and foreign policy strategies and correlates with the maintenance of international stability and security. Dramatic changes in the modern world make for multiple security dimensions, and religious security among them. Religious security is the state of protectability of vitally important spiritual and religious interests of the society at large from internal threats and the interference from outside; and the system of social and political measures to ensure such protectability. Religious security is rooted in the system of social relations both at the national and international level. It is genetically connected with other security dimensions.These connections influence subject-object structure of the religious security, interest-threat complex and indicate that religious security is the dimension and integral part of the modern international security system. International religious security is characterized by international legal instruments containing the guarantees of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion as the main prerequisite of religious security protection. Religious security protection calls for the balanced promotion and achievement of interests and timely prevention of threats in this field. Every newly arisen threat has appropriate methods of counteraction. They require involvement of different religious security guarantees, the most fundamental among them is the exercise of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. Modern international legal concept of this right is based on two axes- equity and non-discrimination. Universal and regional international treaties, ensuring the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, along with the fundamental principles of the international law, serve as normative religious security guarantees. Activities of destructive and totalitarian religious entities, ethnoconfessional communities and religious separatist movements experience different qualifications both at national and international level. The leading principle while regulating their activities should be observation of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion with simultaneous adoption of internationally recognized limitations. Religious security protection is a burning issue for Ukraine, it is interested in maintaining balance between religious-ecclesiastical life and its national interests. To this end it needs to develop religious security doctrine. Such document shall establish the basis for the development of state policy in national religious security protection, further legislative, normative and practical work in this sphere that will allow adequate response to new challenges and threats.