The dissertation is devoted to analysis of democratic civil control over military sphere pattern as a particular form of civil-military relations within a state. In this regard, the author finds out that one of the reasons for troubles with civil-military relations used to be generated with underestimation of their natural complexity. Moreover, it is proved that civil-military relations have not still been understood properly by scholars and policy-makers from Eastern, Western Europe and North America.Another reason of misunderstanding originates from the so-called unique model of civil-military relations (S.Huntington) or the basic structure for the armed forces thought to exist in the West, which both cause ambiguity due to almost complete failure to be purely implemented in any recipient state within the Central-Eastern Europe. The confusion has started from the very beginning, after a number of scholars tried tore-define the civil-military relations paradigm. Alternative terms, such as "civil control", "political control", "civilian management", "democratic control" etc. appeared in the scientific vocabulary but none was satisfactory. As a result, the practice of civil-military relations became shallower than substantive. However, some recommendations were important outputs of the researches. On the policy level, establishment of necessary legal basis for democratic civil control is considered important (M.Janowitz, J.Berk, M.Desch) but much critical is the system to be fully enacted. Another recommendation is that civilian leadership should decide what kind of army it wants to have as well as whether it can afford such force. These have become the reasons to demonstrate that the old civil-military relations theory was a misleading one and any new research should no longer focus on civilian control but on democratic civil control, which includes transparent decision making process, parliamentary oversight, significant judicial bodies involvement to provide not only proper civilian management of the army as it has been perceived before but of the whole military sphere. Besides, special attention is also paid to research problematic issues concerning transformation of relations between a state power, its body - military sphere and a society in the countries on transition. This process is cosidered as having a prior meaning for establishing an effective and operational national security system.With this aim there level of society and state safety from external and internal security threats, the Armed Forces as well as other components of the Military organisation of Ukraine transition, military reform are viewed in the thesis. Changes of society involvement in the state policy on national security and defence are also revealed. Furthermore, the author has conducted a full scaled research of the role of civil society institutions, including their participation in political life of a country, exercising democratic civil control over the military as well as their influence on national security in the developed democratic countries and in Ukraine, where there is a real need to improve the current situation. After appropriate summarising and systematisation of the main peculiar features of the balanced civil-military relations in the democratic states and in the former socialist countries of Central-Eastern Europe (where there are a number of problems left unsolved in spite of significant progress reached in the sphere of democratic civil control) necessity for introduction of a transitional form of such control as an integral part of civil society formation is explained. In this context an algorithm of further steps to be taken is suggested to contribute to creation of an effective national security system. In parallel it is defined that the system of such kind is seen as a vital tool to protect a state and its citizens in nowadays world. And it is believed by the author that this system will be able to resist and neutralise challenges and threats to security even in spite of current transition processes in Ukraine and an initial phase of a civil society building
