The Lviv Border Detachment (2144) also known as the Carpathian Border Detachment is a
brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...
level detachment of the Western Department of the
State Border Service of Ukraine. The detachment guards the
Poland-Ukraine border in four Raions (
Lviv Raion
Lviv Raion () is a raion (district) of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It was created on 18 July 2020 as part of the reform of administrative divisions of Ukraine. The center of the raion is the city of Lviv. Four abolished raions, Horodok, Peremyshliany, ...
,
Sambir Raion
Sambir Raion () is a raion (district) in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine. Its capital (political), administrative center is Sambir. Population: It was established in 1965.
On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the numb ...
,
Yavoriv Raion
Yavoriv Raion () is a raion (district) in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is Yavoriv. It was established in 1939. Its estimated population is
On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number ...
and
Sheptytskyi Raion
Sheptytskyi Raion () is a raion (district) of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It was known as Chervonohrad Raion () from 2020 until 2024. The center of the raion is the city of Sheptytskyi. Population:
History
From the 12th century, the area that is now ...
) of
Lviv Oblast
Lviv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Lvivshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast in western Ukraine. The capital city, capital of the oblast is the city of Lviv. The current population is
History Name
The region is named ...
. The detachment guards a total border length of 279 km including 50 km riverine and 107 km mountainous.
History
The detachment was established in 1993 to guard the western border of Ukraine.
On 29 December 2017, a guardsman of the detachment (Volodymyr Volodymyrovych Salivonchyk) was killed by separatists at a checkpoint near
Volnovakha
Volnovakha ( Ukrainian and Russian: , , ; ) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, eastern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Volnovakha Raion within the oblast. As of January 2022, it had a population of
The train station is a railway h ...
. In 2019, the detachment detained 5 Turkish citizens trying to illegally cross the border into EU. The detachment received 8 patrol vehicles, 3 mobile thermal vision complexes and 126 radio stations as part of the "Cross-border Cooperation Programme Poland-Belarus-Ukraine 2014-2020". In January 2021, the detachment seized 410 packs of cigarettes under the decorative trim of the ceiling of a Ford car being smuggled into Poland.
Following the start of 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 detachment intensified it's duties on the western border as well as on the frontlines. From February to mid November 2022, the detachment detained 107 people trying to illegally cross the border to escape conscription. On 29 January 2023, a guardsman of the detachment (Mykhailo Fedorovych Chop) was killed in Blagodatne. In March 2023, the detachment stopped 3,000 people from crossing the border including 170 with falsified documents and foiled 68 smuggling attempts of items worth more than UAH 1 million as well as 200 ammunition units. Now the police are dealing with these cases, On 21 April 2023, a guardsman of the detachment was killed in
Bakhmut
Bakhmut is a city in eastern Ukraine. It is officially the administrative center of Bakhmut urban hromada and Bakhmut Raion in Donetsk Oblast. The city is located on the Bakhmutka River, about north of Donetsk, the administrative center ...
. On 29 September 2023, the Detachment 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 early 2024, the detachment exposed a schemes to smuggle 130 vehicles into Ukraine without paying duties under the guise of military aid. In June 2024, the detachment struck Russian positions using
FPV drone
First-person view (FPV), also known as remote-person view (RPV), or video piloting, is a method used to control a radio-controlled vehicle from the driver or pilot's viewpoint. Most commonly it is used to pilot a radio-controlled aircraft or oth ...
s and
ATGM
An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy heavily armored military vehicles. ATGMs range in size from shoulder ...
s. On 21 June 2024, a guardsman of the detachment (Andriy Kurylo) was killed in action. In August 2024, the detachment received 50 DJI Mavic 3 Pro UAVs donated by volunteers. The Shkval unit of the detachment has seen extensive combat in the
Battle of Bakhmut
The battle of Bakhmut was a major battle between the Russian Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ukrainian Armed Forces for control of the city of Bakhmut, during the eastern Ukraine campaign, a theatre of the Russian invasion of Uk ...
and the
Battle of Vovchansk.
[ The Shkval Special Unit of the detachment were operating in the Serebryansky forest in November 2024.][Lviv Border Guard Detachment Receives Significant Support]
/ref> Also in November 2024 the detachment seized food supplements, items labeled as CBD-cannabidiol and electronic cigarette
An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), or vape, is a device that simulates smoking. It consists of an atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or tank. Instead of smoke, the user inhales vapor. As such ...
s worth 700 thousand hryvnias being smuggled. On 13 November 2024, the "Shkval" unit of the detachment captured a Russian soldier, killed twelve Russian soldiers and wounded multiple more in Serebryansky forest. On 15 November 2024, the Shkval unit of the detachment again struck Russian positions using FPV drones.
Structure
The detachment includes:
* Management and Headquarters
* Border Service Department "Nismychi"
* Border Service Department "Rava-Ruska"
* Border Service Department "Krakivets"
* Border Service Department "Sheghini"
* Border Service Department "Smilnytsia"
* Border Service Department "Syanky"
* Border Service Department " Lviv International Airport"
* Type-C Border Service Department
* Rapid Response Unit "Shkval"
* Guardian Units
The detachment has 10 checkpoints under its operations which includes 6 Automobile Checkpoints, 3 Railway Checkpoints and 1 Airport Checkpoint.
Commanders
* Colonel V. A. Popov (-1993)
* Major General Rylkov V. AT. (1993-1998)
* Colonel Nishpor O. P. (1998-2003)
* Colonel Shchyr V. D. (2003-2004)
* Lieutenant Colonel Andrusyk I. Y. (2004)
* Colonel Ambros I. N. (2004-2008)
* Colonel Havyak V. R. (2008-2011)
* Lieutenant Colonel Adamchuk O. N. (October 2011-July 2014)
* Colonel V. M. Kravchuk (July 2014-May 2016)
* Lieutenant Colonel Serhii Oleksandrovych Melnyk (May 2016-2018)
* Lieutenant Colonel Cherny O. V. (2018-August 2019)
* Colonel I. I. Rymarchuk (August 2019-January 2021)
References
{{Border Guard of Ukraine
State Border Guard Service of Ukraine
Military units and formations of Ukraine in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Military units and formations established in 1992
Brigades of Ukraine