A top general claims that the world’s militaries will one day study the daring missions that Ukrainian special forces are doing deep behind enemy lines.
Lieutenant Colonel Oleksandr Kindratenko provided information on the constantly changing strategies and methods that are being used to engage Russian forces while utilizing cutting-edge military technology.
He also mentioned several operations when the “warriors” had been crucial in pushing away Moscow’s forces, including the liberation of Snake Island and other significant towns.
Lt Col Kindratenko spoke to Metro.co.uk as the elite units continue to take part in fierce fighting in and around the shattered eastern city of Bakhmut, where they are resisting Russian attacks.
Their role across the warzone is demonstrated in footage and images showing targets being damaged or destroyed with integrated weapons systems including drones and rockets.
Lt Col Kindratenko, who acts as a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF), told Metro.co.uk: ‘Ukrainian SOF are one of the most elite units within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
‘From the very beginning of the full-scale invasion and earlier they took a prominent role in the defence of the country against the Russians.
‘We destroy the enemy both on the frontline as well as deep behind the enemy lines using up to date weapons, technologies and techniques.
‘Much of what Ukrainian SOF are doing is unknown to the general public and will be so for some time but believe me that missions are unique and will be studied by the SOF community all around the world.
‘I am talking about all three components within Ukrainian Special Operations Forces, namely the Special Forces, Psychological Operations and the Resistance Movement.’
Footage released by Ukraine’s special forces this month shows Russian targets being destroyed in Bakhmut, where the shadowy units have been in the forefont of the defence, and the wider Donetsk region.
Snipers are shown picking off targets from ruined buildings and on night missions, while aerial footage shows a US-supplied HIMARS missile destroying a Russian electronic warfare post.
Another clip shows a Russian tank and an infantry fighting vehicle being destroyed in the dark by operators said to have navigated a landmine-strewn area easily visible to Russian forces.
By contrast, the performance of Moscow’s own ‘spetsnaz’ special forces, including in the failed attempt to capture Antonov Airport on the road to Kyiv in the first weeks of the war, is widely considered to have been shambolic by Western military experts.
Deep inside Russia, a series of unclaimed explosions have taken place at military installations, including one last December which damaged two Tu-95 Bear heavy bombers. The long-range jets were at an airbase in Saratov Oblast when the damage was inflicted, with the UK Ministry of Defence describing the incident as one of the ‘most strategically significant’ failures of the Kremlin’s force protection since the full-scale invasion began.
In October last year, a spectacular explosion degraded the Crimea Bridge linking the peninsular to Russia. The blast has also gone unexplained.
Some of the damage behind enemy lines may be linked to the unique ‘Black Box Project’ — a secretive initiative funded through public donations raised by the civilian Come Back Alive foundation.
Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces – known operations
February 2022convoy destruction
Ukrainian SOF are said to have taken part in the destruction of a 40km-long Russian armoured column advancing on Kyiv
April 2022counter-offensive
The elite units take part in a lightning counter-strike driving Russian troops out of the approaches to Kyiv
July 2022snake island
Combat divers using underwater vehicles are part of an assault group reclaiming the outpost from Russian forces
December 2022Combat divers
Grainy night footage released by Ukraine’s SOF shows combat divers in a ‘legendary’ unit heading out on a mission at night
March 2023Snipers
Night footage shows snipers in Bakhmut, one of several videos suggesting Ukrainian forces are overcoming Russian defences under the cover of darkness
april 2023bakhmut defence
SOF Commander Brigadier General Viktor Horenko is shown visiting SOF troops in the Bakhmut ‘hotspot’
In the backdrop is the provision of military technology and training worth billions of dollars from Western nations including the UK, readily utilised through a continued training programme by Ukraine’s SOF.
Lt Col Kindratenko told Metro.co.uk that the elite military wing also comprises Seal teams able to operate underwater.
In the celebrated mission to liberate Snake Island last July, combat divers were said to have approached in underwater vehicles to check for mines before a main battle group approached.
‘Ukrainian SOF is constantly increasing their skills, especially from the beginning of the full-scale invasion,’ Lt Col Kindratenko said.
‘We have an active training centre and instantly integrate lessons learned into training and to enhance the knowledge of our warriors.
‘Moreover, we have already launched a second qualification course during the full-scale invasion. We learn all the time and try to do our training in accordance with current operational needs, because war is a dimension that changes all the time. And we learn from our enemy as well.’
Fragmented details of SOF missions, the vast majority of which are classified, have been released by the Ukrainian military.
The units played a critical role in the rapid counter-offensive that drove the Russians back from the northern approaches to Kyiv in the early phase of the war and the subsequent liberation of the Sumy, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Kherson regions.
Special forces troops were among the first to enter the reclaimed south-eastern city of Kherson itself, the commander said.
The presence of adaptable, highly mobile units has been a marked feature of Ukraine’s ability to inflict crushing losses on an invasion force possessing superior numbers and firepower in the 14 months since the full-scale invasion began.
‘What is more, these are reconnaissance missions which are conducted in concert with our brothers in arms from the Defence Forces mostly from artillery units,’ Lt Col Kindratenko said.
‘We destroy the enemy’s rear positions, heavy armament, electronic warfare and air defence systems, as well as the enemy’s logistics.
‘We are taking part in the hottest spots on the frontline including Bakhmut, Mariinka, Avdiivka and Vuhledar.
‘Our Seals conduct operations over and beneath the water. Also, I would like to highlight the incredible role of Ukrainian SOF snipers.
‘Our Resistance Movement is heavily present in the occupied territories, providing vital information and conducting special tasks.’
Russian forces to the east are said to be well dug in to defensive positions, which, coupled with the Pentagon intelligence leaks, may mean why speculation about a Ukrainian counter-offensive now suggests it will come in the summer, weeks later than first thought.
The UK Ministry of Defence yesterday reported ‘heavy, short-range’ combat in the western districts of Bakhmut, which the defenders were said to have ‘integrated as one element of a much deeper defensive zone’.
On the ground, Ukrainian SOF commander Viktor Horenko visited his troops in the city, where he acknowledged that conditions were ‘difficult’.
But he told the elite units that they had again proved ‘the advantage of quality over quantity’ in destroying Russian targets and hindering its troops from seizing the city.
British assistance, including Challenger 2 tanks, and a long-term training programme, is helping to fulfil a ‘critical’ ability to innovate, Lt Col Kindratenko said.
The US is also providing materiel as Ukraine’s biggest military backer, including through the supply of HIMARS rocket systems and Abrams tanks.
Elite British soldiers, either active or veterans, have long been said to have been supporting Ukrainian forces on the ground.
In the latest apparent disclosure, the leaked US military documents suggested that there might have been as many as 50 UK operators in the country between February and March this year.
Lt Col Kindratenko referred to his own troops’ ability to rapidly innovate with the backing of Western military support as key to inflicting a decisive blow on Moscow’s military machine.
‘Support from our partners is of vital importance for us and we are grateful to the UK and all the people in the UK for the comprehensive support we have received before and during the Russian invasion,’ he said.
‘But still, to win the war we have to receive more weapons and support because Russian capabilities are enormous and in no way should we underestimate the enemy.
‘With the support of our external partners, our forces are able to uniquely employ more innovative solutions and procedures in this war.
‘Innovation in the current war is critical, and we proved many times that we use these innovations effectively.’