Since 26 July, the Army’s assault regiments have been unable to replenish their ranks with personnel from the Territorial Defence Forces, reserve battalions or through transfers from other units. «Ukrainska Pravda» reported this, citing sources within four assault regiments. The only available route is said to be returning from temporary deployment via the «Army+» app for a specific category of servicemen.
Briefly about the main points
- The restriction on the reinforcement of assault units has been in force since 26 July.
- The mobilisation of the Territorial Defence Forces and reserve battalions has been suspended.
- The transfer of military personnel from other units has also been suspended.
- Returning after military service via «Army+» remains a viable option.
- On 29 July, the General Staff announced an inspection of unit manning levels.
Which top-up channels are blocked?
According to UP sources, the order issued by the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Mykhailo Drapaty has halted the supply of «personnel» to assault units and sub-units of the Army from 00:00 on 26 July. The restriction applies to newly mobilised personnel from the Territorial Recruitment Centres, soldiers from reserve battalions and those transferred from other units.
Units retain the option of reinstating service personnel who return after having left their unit without authorisation via «Army+», provided they left the service by 12 June. The Ministry of Defence clarifies that this 100-day scheme remains in force up to and including 20 September: a serviceman may choose a unit from a special list, submit an electronic report and, once approved, report for duty there within five days.
This procedure is not a general method of transfer: it applies to military personnel with a specific status and allows them to choose only from the units available on the app. Once a person has been enrolled, their benefits are reinstated, and they must not be transferred for six months without their written consent.
The decision was taken following a change in command
Mykhailo Drapatiy took up the post of the post of Commander-in-Chief 22 July, four days before the restrictions came into force. He did not issue a public explanation of the reasons for suspending the recruitment of assault regiments.
On 29 July, the General Staff announced the start of an audit into the manning of military units and the fairness of personnel allocation. Although no official explanation was given for the link between this review and the decision regarding the assault regiments, this sequence of events may indicate an intention to review personnel flows following the change in leadership.
UP notes that this is the first decision by the highest military command to restrict the recruitment of assault regiments. Previously, according to the publication, the 425th «Skelya» Regiment and the 225th Regiment received constant reinforcements and had the opportunity to expand, whilst other assault units did not enjoy such conditions.
The context of inspections in assault units
The restrictions were introduced following the publication of investigations into torture, beatings and killings within the assault regiments and the 155th Brigade, which is linked to «Skelya». At the end of June, the then Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky described the reports of misconduct in the 425th Regiment as a «disgraceful situation» and stated that investigations had been carried out into the abuses.
The suspension of recruitment does not in itself imply the disbandment of assault regiments or sanctions against a specific unit. At the same time, it alters the sources of personnel available to them: instead of the usual inflows from the Territorial Recruitment Centres, the reserve and transfers, they can now rely on the mechanism for returning personnel after military service under the «Army+» programme.
