I enlisted in 13th Brigade of National Guard "Khartiia"
A few days ago, I enlisted in the 13th Brigade of the National Guard "Khartiia", at the rank of private, assigned as a rifleman and currently undergoing training. I have many friends in the military who say that journalism is just as important as the frontline because someone has to highlight army problems and the state from the outside. Without external criticism, there can be no internal change.
And that’s true. Yes, journalism that exposes corruption and crimes against the lives of citizens and defends justice is urgently needed during war and it is a good thing that journalists are able to work. My views and principles have not changed in any way.
As a journalist, I have taken part in combat, in defensive operations and in three assault attacks. I have seen the deaths of enemies and the deaths of friends up close. Some people know that I was involved in certain operations, including the planning and deployment of forces, in making a significant number of tactical and operational decisions, in the formation of new military units, in spreading modern combat experience, and in the creation of a UAV command center as part of an OTG (Operational and Tactical Group - ed.note) and a TG (Tactical Group - ed.note). For those who are aware that I have a ruptured Achilles tendon, I can’t jump. I have vision problems and can’t shoot using open sights. But of course, I didn’t mention any of that to the TCR (Territorial Center Recruitment and Social Support - ed.note). I’m healthy. End of story. And I have no intention of serving in a press office — with all due respect to that service.
I am often at the front, and I see the dynamics of the war firsthand; the situation poses a threat to the existence of our state as a whole. I understand that change at the top, under pressure from criticism of the authorities, happens very slowly. We should place our hopes on transformation within the Defense Forces themselves and many such changes, together with other journalists and public opinion, I have managed to help bring about. But much more needs to be done, and it must be done much faster. I believe that the creation of army corps and the development of brigades within them, the development of drone, counter-drone, and engineering units as part of these corps and separate operational units, command and organizational quality, and the quality of infantry training and deployment — all of this can change the course of the war and stabilize the front. And these changes must be made within the army itself and they can only happen under such critically dangerous conditions for the state.
It is an honor for me to become part of the combat family of the 13th Brigade "Khartiia". Many of my close friends are serving here. The first commander of Khartiia — and now the commander of the 2nd Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine (NGU - ed.note) — Ihor Obolienskyi has been on the front line since April 2014. He was the commander of the 1st Experimental Infantry Battalion in the NGU Rapid Response Brigade, and as early as 2016, he introduced the organizational structure, field manuals, and operational procedures of the U.S. Armed Forces. He established an independent non-commissioned officer (NCO- ed.note) corps and decentralized command through an S-staff system (staff structure divided into functional sections like S1–S6 - ed.note). Most importantly, he implemented high standards for selection and training, strong esprit de corps, and the traditions and communication culture of Ukraine’s volunteer movement within the battalion. Today, this experience has been scaled up and significantly refined.
The Khartiia Brigade is building an environment of technologies, operational procedures, and combat algorithms that provide an advantage over the enemy not through numbers of personnel or equipment, but through the quality of command and organization. This enables flexible adaptation of tactics, planning processes, force deployment, and the quality of troop training. I believe in this.
I believe that scaling up a high-quality organization and command is our only real advantage in this war and the only viable path to victory.
I believe that this war requires everyone to give all the strength they can.
And belief is measured by actions.
Yurii Butusov, Censor. NET
