3rd Separate Assault Brigade | |
---|---|
3-тя окрема штурмова бригада 3-tia okrema shturmova bryhada | |
Active | 1 November 2022 – present |
Country | Ukraine |
Branch | Ukrainian Ground Forces |
Role | Mechanized Infantry |
Part of | Operational Command North |
Garrison/HQ | Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast |
Engagements | |
Website |
Official Website Official Telegram channel Official Facebook page Official YouTube Channel |
Commanders | |
Current commander | Andriy Biletsky |
Notable commanders |
Andriy Biletsky Dmytro Kukharchuk |
The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade ( Ukrainian: 3-тя окрема штурмова бригада, romanized: 3-tia okrema shturmova bryhada) is a brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces formed in 2022. [4]
The brigade was established by a merger of the Azov SSO ( Special Operations Forces) units that had been created by former Azov Battalion veterans. [5] [6] The brigade is commanded by Andriy Biletsky, founder and former commander of the Azov Battalion and former People's Deputy of Ukraine.
With the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, most units of the Azov Regiment were based in Mariupol where they soon would be besieged. Outside of Mariupol, many former veterans of Azov outside the city began forming new units, in particular in Kyiv, Sumy and Kharkiv. These units were soon integrated into the Special Operations Forces (SSO) of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and became collectively known as "Azov SSO". [5] [7]
In November 2022, all the former Azov SSO were merged into a single fully operational combat unit within the Ukrainian Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. [8] [6] The formation of this brigade was strategically designed to create a highly mobile, well-equipped, and extensively trained force capable of engaging in both defensive and offensive operations. [5] [6]
An important milestone for the brigade occurred on 24 February 2023, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy personally presented the Regimental Colour during a ceremonial event. [9] The colors of the brigade were said to "symbolize the tenacity of the traditions of Ukrainian statehood; from precisely the times of the Kievan Rus', the Cossack period, the first liberation struggles in the early 20th century to modern times. [10]
The brigade's soldiers took part in the liberation of Kherson and overall Kherson region, as well as in the Battle of Bakhmut. [11] On April 12, 2023, the brigade's official media resources announced the start of recruitment efforts. [12] In May 2023, it was one of the first to report successful offensives in the Bakhmut district against the Russian Ground Forces. [13]
On 15 September 2023, after months of fighting, the brigade liberated Andriivka, [14] and held onto it despite a Russian counterattack on 17 September. [15] Ukrainian ground forces commander General Syrskyi called Klishchiivka and Andriivka "important elements of the Russian Bakhmut-Horlivka defensive line", and ISW assessed that the capture of these settlements defending a key Russian ground line of communication will make it difficult for the already weary defending forces to replenish and continue defending. [16]
In February of 2024, shortly after the dismissal of Zaluzhnyi, the brigade was transferred into Avdiivka to relieve the potential encirclement of the city. [17] After the fall of Avdiivka on February 17, the brigade took new defensive lines west of Avdiivka around Lastochkyne. [18]
As of 2024, the brigade's structure is as follows: [19]
3rd Separate Assault Brigade | |
---|---|
3-тя окрема штурмова бригада 3-tia okrema shturmova bryhada | |
Active | 1 November 2022 – present |
Country | Ukraine |
Branch | Ukrainian Ground Forces |
Role | Mechanized Infantry |
Part of | Operational Command North |
Garrison/HQ | Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast |
Engagements | |
Website |
Official Website Official Telegram channel Official Facebook page Official YouTube Channel |
Commanders | |
Current commander | Andriy Biletsky |
Notable commanders |
Andriy Biletsky Dmytro Kukharchuk |
The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade ( Ukrainian: 3-тя окрема штурмова бригада, romanized: 3-tia okrema shturmova bryhada) is a brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces formed in 2022. [4]
The brigade was established by a merger of the Azov SSO ( Special Operations Forces) units that had been created by former Azov Battalion veterans. [5] [6] The brigade is commanded by Andriy Biletsky, founder and former commander of the Azov Battalion and former People's Deputy of Ukraine.
With the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, most units of the Azov Regiment were based in Mariupol where they soon would be besieged. Outside of Mariupol, many former veterans of Azov outside the city began forming new units, in particular in Kyiv, Sumy and Kharkiv. These units were soon integrated into the Special Operations Forces (SSO) of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and became collectively known as "Azov SSO". [5] [7]
In November 2022, all the former Azov SSO were merged into a single fully operational combat unit within the Ukrainian Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. [8] [6] The formation of this brigade was strategically designed to create a highly mobile, well-equipped, and extensively trained force capable of engaging in both defensive and offensive operations. [5] [6]
An important milestone for the brigade occurred on 24 February 2023, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy personally presented the Regimental Colour during a ceremonial event. [9] The colors of the brigade were said to "symbolize the tenacity of the traditions of Ukrainian statehood; from precisely the times of the Kievan Rus', the Cossack period, the first liberation struggles in the early 20th century to modern times. [10]
The brigade's soldiers took part in the liberation of Kherson and overall Kherson region, as well as in the Battle of Bakhmut. [11] On April 12, 2023, the brigade's official media resources announced the start of recruitment efforts. [12] In May 2023, it was one of the first to report successful offensives in the Bakhmut district against the Russian Ground Forces. [13]
On 15 September 2023, after months of fighting, the brigade liberated Andriivka, [14] and held onto it despite a Russian counterattack on 17 September. [15] Ukrainian ground forces commander General Syrskyi called Klishchiivka and Andriivka "important elements of the Russian Bakhmut-Horlivka defensive line", and ISW assessed that the capture of these settlements defending a key Russian ground line of communication will make it difficult for the already weary defending forces to replenish and continue defending. [16]
In February of 2024, shortly after the dismissal of Zaluzhnyi, the brigade was transferred into Avdiivka to relieve the potential encirclement of the city. [17] After the fall of Avdiivka on February 17, the brigade took new defensive lines west of Avdiivka around Lastochkyne. [18]
As of 2024, the brigade's structure is as follows: [19]