Offensive Guard (Ukraine)
The Offensive Guard (Ukrainian: Гвардія Наступу, romanized: Hvardiia Nastupu) is a project of Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs with the aim to form new assault brigades in the structure of National Guard, National Police and Border Guards.[1] The project commenced in January 2023.[2]
History
The formation envisions a strength of eight exclusively volunteer assault brigades, to be active by April 2023.[2] It was initially created by the inclusion of the Azov Brigade (formerly Azov Regiment), and a call for volunteers,[2][3] especially from active members of the National Police, Border Guards, and National Guard and veterans of the Russo-Ukrainian War that started when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2014.[1]
In just over a week, Internal Affairs registered 27,000 enquiries including 15,000 applications for admission, 500 of them female candidates, while more than 800 had already passed medical examinations in the enlistment process.[2][4]
Structure
As of 2023, the structure is as follows:[4]
State Border Guard
- 15th "Stalevyi Kordon" (Steel Border) Mobile Brigade
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
National Guard
- "Azov" Assault Brigade, Yurivka, Donetsk Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Company
- 2nd Company
- 3rd Company
- 4th Company
- Tank Company
- 1st (Presidential) "Bureviy" (Storm) Brigade Petro Doroshenko, Vyshhorod, Kyiv Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Infantry Battalion
- 2nd Infantry Battalion
- 3rd Infantry Battalion
- Artillery Battalion
- Anti-Aircraft Defense Battalion
- 14th "Chervona Kalyna" Brigade Ivan Bohun, Kalynivka, Vinnytsia Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Infantry Battalion
- 2nd Infantry Battalion
- 3rd Infantry Battalion
- 15th "Kara-Dag" Brigade, Zaporizhzhia, Zaporizhzhia Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Infantry Battalion
- 2nd Infantry Battalion
- 3rd Infantry Battalion
- Tank Company
- Artillery Battalion
- Anti-Aircraft Defense Battalion
- Reconnaissance Company
- 4th "Rubizh" Brigade, Hostomel, Kyiv Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Guardsmen Battalion
- 2nd Guardsmen Battalion
- Svoboda Battalion
- Tank Company
- Artillery Battalion
- Anti-Aircraft Defense Battalion
- 3rd "Spartan" Brigade, Kharkiv, Kharkiv Oblast
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- 1st Infantry Battalion
- 2nd Infantry Battalion
- 3rd Infantry Battalion
- 4th Infantry Battalion
- Tank Company
- Artillery Battalion
- Anti-Aircraft Defense Battalion
- Reconnaissance Company
National Police
- "Lyut" (Fury) Brigade, Kyiv
- Brigade HQ and HQ Company
- Tsunami Assault Regiment
- Safari Assault Regiment
- Luhansk-1 Special Purpose Battalion
References
- ^ a b Mazurenko, Alona (2023-02-02). "Ukraine's Interior Ministry forming volunteer assault brigades known as Offensive Guard". Ukrainska Pravda. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ a b c d "Ukraine's Offensive Guard receives 27,000 applications, new brigades planned". news.yahoo.com. Yahoo! News. 2023-02-12. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ "Azov regiment expands to brigade within National Guard of Ukraine". Yahoo! News. 2023-02-09. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ a b Kuznetsova, Kateryna (2023-02-08). До штурмових бригад "Гвардія наступу" вже долучилося понад 500 дівчат — МВС. TSN (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-02-13.
External links
- Offensive Guard, official website