The Russian Naval Infantry, often referred to as Russian Marines in the West, operate as the naval infantry of the Russian Navy. Established in 1705, they are capable of conducting amphibious operations as well as operating as more traditional light infantry.
The Black Sea Fleet is the fleet of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. The Black Sea Fleet, along with other Russian ground and air forces on the Crimean Peninsula, are subordinate to the Southern Military District of the Russian Armed Forces. The fleet traces its history to its founding by Prince Potemkin on 13 May 1783 as part of the Imperial Russian Navy. The Russian SFSR inherited the fleet in 1918; with the founding of the Soviet Union in 1922, it became part of the Soviet Navy. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Black Sea Fleet was partitioned between the Russian Federation and Ukraine in 1997, with Russia receiving title to 82% of the vessels.
The Ukrainian Navy is the maritime forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Stridsbåt 90 H(alv) is a class of fast military assault craft used by several countries after being originally developed for the Swedish Navy by Dockstavarvet. Its name means Combat Boat 90 Half; the 90 refers to the year of acceptance (1990) and Half refers to the fact that it can carry and deploy a half platoon of amphibious infantry fully equipped. The CB90 is an exceptionally fast and agile boat that can execute extremely sharp turns at high speed, decelerate from top speed to a full stop in 2.5 boat lengths, and adjust both its pitch and roll angle while under way. Its lightweight, shallow draught, and twin water jets allow it to operate at speeds of up to 40 knots (74 km/h) in shallow coastal waters. The water jets are partially ducted, which, along with underwater control surfaces similar to a submarine's diving planes, gives the CB90 its manoeuvrability.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade named after theBlack Zaporozhians is a formation of the Ukrainian Ground Forces. It was previously named the 29th Rifle Division and then the 72nd Guards Rifle Division of the Soviet Ground Forces. In 1957, it became a motor rifle division.
The 95th Separate Polesian Air Assault Brigade(Ukrainian: 95-та окрема десантно-штурмова Поліська бригада; 95 ОДШБр); Military Unit Number A0281) is a unit of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces. The brigade is located in Zhytomyr. It is considered one of the most prestigious and capable units in the Ukrainian military. The brigade is one of Ukraine’s Partnership for Peace units. The brigade received a lot of publicity for its raid behind the separatist lines allegedly inflicting heavy losses on separatist and Russian forces during the war in Donbas.
The Ukrainian Marine Corps, also known simply as the Ukrainian Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 2023, responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations. From its modern foundation in 1993 up to 2023 it constituted part of the Coastal Forces of the Ukrainian Navy. It is used as a component part of amphibious, airborne and amphibious-airborne operations, alone or in coordination with formations and units of the Ground Forces in order to capture parts of the seashore, islands, ports, fleet bases, coast airfields and other coast objects from the enemy. It can also be used to defend naval bases, vital shoreline areas, separate islands and coast objects, and security of hostile areas.
An amphibious assault ship is a type of warship employed to land and support ground forces on enemy territory during an armed conflict. The design evolved from aircraft carriers converted for use as helicopter carriers. Modern designs support amphibious landing craft, with most designs including a well deck. Like the aircraft carriers they were developed from, some amphibious assault ships also support V/STOL fixed-wing aircraft and have a secondary role as aircraft carriers.
Tsezar Kunikov (BDK-64), sometimes anglicised as Caesar Kunikov, was a Project 775, large landing ship of the Russian Navy. The ship was built in Polish People's Republic, launched in 1986 and named after Soviet Naval Infantry officer Tsezar Kunikov. As part of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, it took part in the KFOR mission, the Russo-Georgian War, the Syrian Civil War, and the Russo-Ukrainian War.
The Project 58181 Centaur (Kentavr)/Project 58503 Centaur-LK class is a series of small armored assault craft being built for the Ukrainian Navy. The first two vessels were laid down at the Kuznya na Rybalskomu in December 2016. The 58181 project was developed by State Research and Design Shipbuilding Center on the basis of the Gyurza-M-class gunboats, and the 58503 project number was assigned to the altered design used after construction of the first eight units began (by the contractor that oversaw their construction, PJSC ZLK. Designed for carrying patrol service on rivers and coastal maritime areas, delivery and landing of marines.
The Raptor-class patrol boat, Russian designation Project 03160, is a series of Russian high-speed coastal patrol boats. Boats of the class belong to the 4th rank ships in the Russian Navy. This project was developed by the design bureau of JSC Leningrad Shipyard Pella on the instructions of the Russian Navy. The boats are built at the Pella shipyard in the town of Otradnoye, Leningrad Region. Due to the great similarity in appearance, the boats of the project can be confused with the Swedish CB90-class fast assault craft and other transport and landing boats of the 02510 BK-16 project, developed by the Kalashnikov concern and manufactured at Rybinsk shipyard.
Valerii Fedorovych Zaluzhnyi is a Ukrainian four-star general and diplomat who is currently serving as Ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom. He served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from 27 July 2021 until 8 February 2024. He was also concurrently a member of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.
The Snake Island campaign was a period of Russian occupation and military conflict for Snake Island, a small, strategically located Ukrainian island in the Black Sea. On 24 February 2022, the first day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Navy attacked Snake Island and captured it along with its entire garrison, beginning a military occupation of the island. The attack was widely publicized when an audio clip of the Russian cruiser Moskva hailing the island's garrison over the radio demanding their surrender and being told "Russian warship, go fuck yourself" in response went viral, along with initial inaccurate reports of the garrison's deaths. Later on, it emerged that a civilian search and rescue ship trying to evacuate the soldiers was also captured along with the garrison. The ship, its crew, and at least one soldier were subsequently freed in prisoner exchanges.
Denys Hennadiyovych Prokopenko is a Ukrainian military officer who is a Lieutenant Colonel of the National Guard of Ukraine and Commander of the 12th Special Forces Brigade "Azov", as well as a prominent participant of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Beginning in July 2022, a series of explosions and fires occurred on the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula from where the Russian Army had launched its offensive on Southern Ukraine during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Occupied since 2014, Crimea was a base for the subsequent Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast and Russian occupation of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The Ukrainian government has not accepted responsibility for all of the attacks.
Yulia Mykytenko is a military servicewoman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, combatant of the Russo-Ukrainian War, recipient of the Order for Courage, activist of the сivic movement "Vidsich" and of the NGO "Female veterans movement".
The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade is a brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces formed in 2022.
Ukraine