Police in the rear and in the war: Oleksiy Biloshytskyi spoke about daily service and participation in battles
This year, the patrol police of Ukraine turns 10 years old. Although at the start they did not really believe in it and called the reform situational, but it continues to work. Today, patrol officers are not just official cars on the roads, but part of everyday reality: both in the rear and under fire. They continue to be criticized—sometimes rightfully and sometimes not—but they are addressed every day. How police officers fight, why patrol officers work together with the TCC, how scandals with serving summons affected trust, what has changed over the years — and how the system reacts when patrol officers themselves break the law. About this told the first deputy chief of the Patrol Police Department, Oleksiy Biloshitskyi.
What has changed in the police in 10 years
Oleksiy Biloshitsky noted that the patrol police of Ukraine will celebrate 10 years in 2025, and during this time the patrol police has changed radically. In 2015, the launch was planned only in four cities — Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv and Lviv. However, public demand turned out to be so powerful that already in 2016, patrol police began working in all major cities of Ukraine. At first, it had about 4,000 people, later – 10,000, and now – 17,000.
Biloshitsky emphasized that today the patrol police is not only responding to calls through line 102, but a whole range of units. Among them are tactical-operational groups engaged in maintaining public order, motorcycle and bicycle patrols, water and horse patrols, as well as a civil air support unit, which began to develop in 2017.
He also noted that the patrol police now work not only in cities, but also on most routes of national and international importance, and one of the main goals in the near future is to expand patrolling within certain districts of the oblasts. Dubenskyi district in Rivne region, Khmelnytskyi district in Vinnytsia region, Bilotserkivskyi district in Kyiv region have already become pilots. The nearest plans are to launch in Chernivtsi and Vinnytsia districts, as well as in Rivne district.
Along with this, according to Biloshitskyi, it is worth talking not only about structural expansion, but first of all about what the essence of the patrol police is based on – it is help and trust. The main function has remained unchanged since 2015: to help, save, prevent and make people’s lives safer. He emphasized that now all Ukrainian cities are in a state of war – regardless of how safe or dangerous the situation looks from the outside. War affects every region, and that is why the task of ensuring public safety under martial law has become even more difficult and requires extraordinary powers. It is against this background, according to Biloshitskyi, that it is worth evaluating the work of the patrol police – considering the level of security that is being maintained even now.
Regarding the level of trust in the police
Speaking about trust in the police, Biloshitskyi admitted that according to polls in 2025, its level decreased from 41% to 37%. However, he emphasized that it is not only about the patrol police, but about the general attitude towards the law enforcement system. At the same time, he recalled that at the beginning of a full-scale war, the level of trust in the police increased sharply – precisely because the police remained close to the people, did not disappear, did not run away, but continued to work where it was needed.
Biloshitsky reminded that despite the change in circumstances, the function of the patrol police has not changed — it is to be there where people need help. And this remains the most important measure of their work — regardless of rating or criticism.
Oleksiy Biloshitsky emphasized that he personally remembers all the main operations carried out by the patrol police since 2022, in particular, the evacuation of cities, assistance to the civilian population, participation in hostilities and the performance of a whole range of functions assigned to the police during the war. He emphasized that the participation of the police was important not only on the front line, but also in the everyday life of the country. Especially in the cities that were the first to be hit by the enemy: Kyiv, Mariupol, Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, Rubizhny. In these settlements, the police were close to people, helped them, did not leave them alone. And that is why, as Biloshitskyi noted, citizens saw the policemen as their defenders and trusted them.
He admitted that the level of trust in the police is influenced not only by the actions of the police officers themselves, but also by the general social tension in society. In his opinion, the police is the first state unit through which citizens involuntarily assess the situation in general. After all, it is the police that ensures public safety, maintaining order, and usually directly or indirectly participates in all processes that take place in society. Biloshitsky emphasized that even those tasks that are not directly police can affect the level of trust in the body as a whole — and a vivid example is cooperation with territorial recruiting centers.
Regarding police cooperation with the TCC
Separately, Biloshitskyi commented on the situation with the cooperation of the patrol police and the TCC. According to him, he personally does not consider this a function that the police should perform under ideal conditions. If he were asked whether he wanted the patrol police to deal with this, the answer would be unequivocally no. However, the participation of the police in the process of mobilization is dictated by the circumstances — precisely those in which the state is today.
He reminded that emotional phrases such as “send all policemen to the front” are often heard in society, but they forget that the police is the same part of the security system that works in the rear no less important. Biloshitsky noted that among the patrolmen there are people who went to the front voluntarily – even women who have three children. He mentioned the example of the “Predator” brigade, which is made up of former police officers and receives the same allowances as other military personnel who take part in combat operations.
Biloshitsky emphasized: mobilization is not part of the powers of the police. The police do not carry out mobilization measures, do not decide who to mobilize, do not determine who is subject to mobilization, and do not issue summonses. This is the exclusive competence of the TCC. Instead, the police, in accordance with the Law “On the National Police”, in cooperation with the TCC, can help in carrying out certain actions – for example, alerting citizens or identifying wanted persons. If such a person is found, the police have the authority to detain him in accordance with Articles 210 and 210-1 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.
Biloshitskyi admitted that there is serious emotional tension in society regarding this issue, and it is intensified by numerous videos on social networks where, according to users, people are “grabbed on the streets”, “arms are broken”, etc. But, according to the deputy head of the department, such videos do not always show the full picture. It is not clear what exactly started the conflict, who first provoked the situation, whether this person was wanted or evading the serving of a summons.
According to him, the police act within the limits of the law, and if an employee goes beyond these limits, it should be the subject of separate responsibility. But at the same time, the general activity of the police cannot be reduced to a few video fragments taken out of context, especially in wartime, when the police, along with other defense forces, ensure the safety of the state and citizens. He emphasized that the police is not a third-party body, but a part of the Defense Forces, which also bears the burden and works both in the rear and directly on the combat fronts.
At the same time, Oleksiy Biloshitskyi admitted that there are indeed situations when both TCC employees and police officers may exceed their authority. He emphasized that official investigations are conducted after such incidents. He explained that internal control units operate within the patrol police — in particular, monitoring units that promptly respond to such cases. They analyze each situation separately, find out whether the actions of the police officer were lawful, and in case of violations, decisions are made within the framework of disciplinary proceedings. If there is reason to see signs of a criminal offense, then the cases are transferred to the relevant authorities – either to the Department of Internal Security of the National Police, or to the State Bureau of Investigation. According to Biloshitskyi, no situation is hushed up, and authorized bodies are working on each one. This, in his opinion, is the key difference between the modern police and the system that existed before.
Are the police at war?
Speaking about the insults directed at the police “why aren’t they at the front?”, which often appear on social networks after video incidents, Biloshitskyi called this narrative extremely incorrect and untrue. He expressed the hope that such a view is an exception and not a widespread belief in society. According to him, the National Police has been involved in hostilities since the first day of the full-scale invasion, and the police leadership immediately decided to form combat units to perform tasks directly on the front line.
Biloshitsky reminded that the police, despite all the difficulties, not only maintain public order, but also develop a combat component. At first, these were small consolidated detachments, but later they grew to large-scale structures. For example, the “Khyzhak” combat brigade began with participation in the defense of Irpen, and now it is a full-fledged combat unit, just like the “Lyut” brigade and other rifle formations of the National Police. According to Biloshitskyi, there are thousands of policemen at the front, although he did not specify the exact number. Many of them, he said, are injured or dead, and their sacrifice is priceless.
That’s why, as he emphasized, questions like “why aren’t you at the front?” are not only unjustified, but also offensive – both to those policemen who directly fight, and to the entire structure. Biloshitskyi added that not only Ukrainian reports, but also enemy ones testify to the participation of policemen in hostilities, because the Russian side has repeatedly recognized the effectiveness of the actions of the “Predator” and “Lyut” units, which caused serious losses in certain areas of the front. As an example, he cited the current situation in Toretsk — one of the hottest areas where police units operate, holding the line and preventing the enemy from advancing.
What will happen if all the police go to the front
Biloshitskyi admitted that there are still periodic calls to “send the entire police force to the front.” He called this proposal utopian. In a state at war, law and order must be as important a support as the frontline. According to him, the composition of the police after February 24, 2022 has not actually changed, while the functional load has increased several times. The personnel work in an enhanced mode, carry out tasks that are much broader than before the war, and keep the situation under control – both crime-related and generally in the field of public order.
Biloshitsky emphasized: the police are needed on the streets today no less than at the front. And it is precisely the presence of the police in the cities that allows relative stability to be maintained within the country. He noted that the level of street crime not only did not increase, but for some types of offenses it even decreased. The police demonstrate a very high rate of solving such crimes — more than 90% of cases of this category of offenses are solved. This, according to Biloshitskyi, is a direct evidence of the effectiveness of police work even in wartime conditions.
At the same time, he emphasized that the general situation faced by law enforcement agencies is now radically different from the pre-war situation. This especially applies to offenses related to the illegal circulation of weapons. If before the full-scale invasion, such cases were isolated, now their number has increased many times. Last year alone, more than 5,000 criminal offenses related to the illegal handling of weapons were registered.
We are talking about a large number of weapons, ammunition and explosive devices that are in illegal circulation, illegally transported or stored by persons who do not have the right to do so. The police regularly discover such facts, and this is one of the key threats that law enforcement officers face every day on the streets of Ukrainian cities and towns. According to Biloshitskyi, this problem requires constant work and attention, and the police systematically deal with it.
Separately, he emphasized the significant expansion of police functions under martial law. Among the tasks performed by police officers today are not only patrols or investigations, but also direct participation in ensuring the defense capability of the state. This includes, in particular, the organization and work at checkpoints that continue to function in many regions, monitoring of curfew compliance, strategic support of cargo and humanitarian missions, assistance to the population on the front line and in de-occupied areas.
Biloshitskyi also noted that even in the temporarily occupied territories there are still police officers who continue to perform their tasks – sometimes in absolutely critical conditions. This, according to him, is another proof of how deeply and widely the police are today involved in the systematic support of the functioning of the state during the war.
