The 140th Separate Marine Reconnaissance Battalion is a marine reconnaissance battalion of the

Ukrainian Marine Corps The Ukrainian Marine Corps (, ), also known simply as the Ukrainian Marines (), is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 2023, responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations. From ...

established in 2019 as an independent unit subordinated directly to the Marine Corps Command and has seen combat during both the

War in Donbass The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war began in April 2014, when Russian paramilitaries seized several towns. Ukraine's military launched an operation ...

and the

Russian Invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, performing combat and ISTAR for military intelligence operations throughout the entire front.

History

It was officially established on 1 February 2019 by the

Commander Lieutenant General Yu.I. Sodol with its headquarters being the "White Wings" camp complex in

Skadovsk Skadovsk (, , ) is a port city on the Black Sea coast in Kherson Oblast, southern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Skadovsk Raion and also hosts the administration of Skadovsk urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The ...

community, in the immediate vicinity of the Russian occupied Crimea to conduct observation of Russian actions in the air, land and water near

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

as well as taking part in international cooperation measures, conducting international exercises,defense and protection of important sites. In November 2020, the battalion started participating in the

as a part of Joint Forces Operation and was fully involved in combat since August 2021. During the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, the battalion saw combat in Zachativka with a soldier (Gevak Anton) being killed in action on 5 March 2022, while facing a column of tanks and conducting a solo assault destroying a tank using a

NLAW The Saab Bofors Dynamics NLAW ( ), also known as the MBT LAW or RB 57, is a fire-and-forget, lightweight shoulder-fired, and disposable (single-use) line of sight (LOS) missile system, designed for infantry use. The missile uses a soft-laun ...

and another soldier (Gizimchuk Volodymyr Mykolayovych) being killed in action on 9 March. The battalion also operated in

Krasna Poliana, Donetsk Oblast Nova Karakuba (), until 2024 known as Krasna Poliana (; ; ) is a village in southern Ukraine, administratively located in Staromlynivka rural hromada, Volnovakha Raion, Donetsk Oblast Donetsk Oblast, also referred to as Donechchyna (, ), is ...

where a soldier (Yury Duman) was killed in action on 10 March 2022. The battalion also saw combat in

Solodke Solodke () may refer to the following places in Ukraine: * Solodke, Donetsk Oblast, village in Donetsk Oblast * Solodke, Melitopol Raion, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, village in Melitopol Raion * Solodke, Polohy Raion, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, village in P ...

in April 2022 with a soldier (Serhii Volodymyrovych Hryshchuk) being killed in action on 3 April. In October 2022, it saw intensive action in

Donetsk Oblast Donetsk Oblast, also referred to as Donechchyna (, ), is an Oblasts of Ukraine, oblast in eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 million residents. Its capital city, administrative centre is Donetsk, though d ...

with two soldiers (Vladyslav Volodymyrovych Martyniuk and Kolomiets Oleg VolodymyrovychУказ Президента України No. 806/2022 від 28 листопада 2022 року «Про відзначення державними нагородами України»
/ref>) being killed in combat on 13 October. On 17 November 2022, while performing combat reconnaissance operations in

and

Luhansk Oblast Luhansk Oblast (; ), also referred to as Luhanshchyna (), is the easternmost Administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Luhansk. The oblast was established in 1938 and bore the n ...

, two soldiers of the battalion (Volodymyr Gennadiyovych Ovchynnikov) was killed in combat operations near

Dibrova Dibrova () may refer to the following places in Ukraine: * Dibrova, Saranchuky rural hromada, Ternopil Raion, Ternopil Oblast * Dibrova, Saranchuky Hromada, Ternopil Raion * Dibrova, Zbarazh Hromada, Ternopil Raion * Dibrova, Zhytomyr Oblast * ...

in the

and another soldier (Anton Tsvetkov)) was killed in action, the same day in

. On December 6, 2022, the 140th Separate Reconnaissance Battalion received the Combat Flag. In December 2022, the battalion fought in

Lymanske Lymanske () may refer to several places in Ukraine: Places * Lymanske, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast * Lymanske, Kherson Oblast * Lymanske, Mykolaiv Oblast * Lymanske, Izmail Raion, Odesa Oblast * Lymanske, Rozdilna Raion, Odesa Oblast Lymanske (; ...

with a soldier (Tymofiy Semka) being killed on 24 December 2022. On 17 May 2023, while operating in

, a soldier of the battalion (V'yacheslav Volodymyrovych Chekmaryov) was killed in combat. On May 23, 2023, the battalion was awarded the honorary award "

For Courage and Bravery For Courage and Bravery () is an honorary award established by the President of Ukraine to recognize distinguished combat performance, courage, bravery and heroism of units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, National Guard of Ukraine, State Border ...

." In October 2023, the battalion saw combat in

Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast (, ; ), also known as Khersonshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) in southern Ukraine. It is located just north of Crimea. Its administrative center is Kherson, on the northern or right bank ...

as a part of the

2023 Ukrainian Counteroffensive In early June 2023, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine launched a Counter-offensive, counteroffensive against Russian forces Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupying its territory with a goal of breaching the front lines ...

. The battalion took part in combat operations in

Oleshky Oleshky (, ), previously known as Tsiurupynsk from 1928 to 2016, is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Kherson Raion, Kherson Oblast, southern Ukraine, located on the left bank of the Dnieper River with the town of Solontsi, Kherson Raion, So ...

and on 5 December 2023, a soldier of the battalion (Valeriy Volodymyrovych Galushko) was killed in a battle near Tsyurupinsk. On 8 July 2024, the commander of the battalion's radio communication (Vasyl Lema) was killed in combat.

Commanders

* Oleksandr Mykolayovych Staryna

Structure

* Intelligence Company *

UAV An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers onboard, but rather is controlled remotely or is autonomous.De Gruyter Handbook of Drone ...

Company "Valkyrie" * Electronic Intelligence Company * Artillery and Fire Support Company * Guard and Protection Unit

References

{{Reflist Military units and formations established in 2019 Military units and formations of Ukraine in the war in Donbas Military units and formations of Ukraine in the Russian invasion of Ukraine