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The article presents an analysis of defense law in the legal system of the Republic of Poland in the context of its importance for the defense of the state. The author discusses the role of the state defense system in ensuring national security and presents defense law as a foundation for effective organization of this system. Moreover, the author analyzes the subject matter of defense law and points out the difficulties in its proper organization. The key issues discussed in the article are the need for defense law reforms and indication of the proposals as to the direction in which changes in this field of law should go.

Artykuł prezentuje wyniki badań w zakresie prawnoustrojowego statusu Sił Zbrojnych w Konstytucji RP. Analizie została poddana rola Sił Zbrojnych RP w realizacji głównych celów państwa polskiego i ich relacje do innych zasad ustrojowych oraz obywatelskiego obowiązku obrony Ojczyzny. Ponadto omówione zostały kompetencje naczelnych organów państwa w aspekcie obronności i bezpieczeństwa oraz cywilnej i demokratycznej kontroli nad Siłami Zbrojnymi, a także zasady pełnienia służby wojskowej w kontekście praw i wolności obywatelskich. Następnie polskie rozwiązania konstytucyjne zostały poddane analizie prawnoporównawczej z przepisami konstytucji wybranych państw członkowskich Sojuszu Północnoatlantyckiego – Niemiec, Francji, Hiszpanii, Grecji, Danii, Norwegii, Estonii i Czech.

In democratic countries, the so-called covert actions are the most controversial element of the intelligence services activities. Covert actions are secret operations aimed, inter alia, at influencing the political, economic or military situation of other countries (e.g., inspiring coups d'état, paramilitary actions, assassinations, training and financing of armed troops or the use of "black" propaganda). Covert actions are a powerful tool in the hands of the executive, but they should be effectively controlled by the legislative authority. The purpose of the article is to analyze the powers of the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States of America to control covert actions. The author presents current legal and organizational solutions and also indicates how, under the influence of successive covert action scandals, legal provisions have changed in the direction of extending the powers of the Congress in the field of control. At the same time, the author presents problems with the interpretation of some legal solutions in the context of the supervision of the Congress after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 and the extension of covert actions to include actions of special forces and targeted killings of terrorists.

Every day, U.S. intelligence agencies gather huge amounts of information from a variety of sources. Collection of information is an essential part of the process described as Intelligence Cycle. The purpose of this article is to identify the essence and nature of intelligence sources and to analyze their practical use by the agencies and departments that make up the U.S. Intelligence Community. The author characterizes the main types of intelligence sources – Human Intelligence (HUMINT), Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT), Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Measurement and Signature Intelligence (MASINT), and Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) – and indicates which U.S. intelligence agencies are responsible for their use. Moreover, the author presents the problems with the use of intelligence sources that occur in the work of the U.S. Intelligence Community. Research findings indicate that the best results of intelligence work can be achieved with the use of "all-source intelligence" (also referred to as fusion intelligence), which involves using as many sources as possible to prepare a final intelligence product.

The article presents an analysis of the legal status, organization and powers of the special services of the Republic of Estonia. The author presents the mission and tasks of the Estonian Internal Security Service (Kaitsepolitsei), the Estonian Foreign Intelligence Service (Välisluureamet) and the Military Intelligence Centre (Luurekeskus). The article show the historical aspect of the Estonian special services and their location in the structure of state organs responsible for national security. In addition, the author presents a surveillance system on the activities of intelligence and counterintelligence services.