3rd Separate Assault Brigade

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade (3 OShBr) is a military formation of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It is part of the 3rd Army Corps.

From the first days of the Russian invasion of 2022, "Azov" territorial defense units began forming in Kyiv. These units fought battles near Kyiv. On March 9, the units were reformed into the "Azov" Special Operations Forces regiment. The regiment fought in the Zaporizhzhia direction, and reinforcements from the regiment reached besieged Mariupol by helicopter. In summer and autumn, the regiment took part in the Kherson counteroffensive. In 2023, the regiment was transformed into a separate assault brigade; in summer the brigade fought near Bakhmut. In winter 2024, the brigade fought in Avdiivka and Krasnohorivka. In March 2025, the 3rd Army Corps began forming on the basis of the brigade.

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade was formed on the basis of a unit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which in turn was formed on the basis of the "Azov" volunteer territorial defense unit, created in Kyiv on February 24, 2022, in the first hours of the full-scale invasion. The core of the unit was made up of veterans of the "Azov" Special Operations Detachment of the National Guard of Ukraine and members of the Azov movement.
On January 26, 2023, it was announced that the regiment would be reformed into the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade (3 OShBr), and on February 24 the brigade was presented with its battle flag.

On April 12, 2023, the brigade's official media announced the start of recruitment into the unit.

On May 10, 2023, the brigade carried out a successful offensive in Bakhmut. The offensive was led by the 1st and 2nd assault battalions, supported by the 1st and 2nd mechanized battalions; they inflicted losses on the 72nd Motor Rifle Brigade of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, which retreated in this direction.

In June 2023, the commander of the 2nd assault battalion, Dmytro Kukharchuk, said that his battalion had advanced 1,800 m in depth and 1,200 m along the front near Bakhmut. According to him, they pushed back the 57th Motor Rifle Brigade of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, reinforced with Storm-Z convicts.

On September 14, 2023, the brigade liberated the village of Andriivka near Bakhmut.

In February 2024, the brigade was redeployed to Avdiivka, where it covered the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the city. Units of the brigade were positioned on the territory of the coke plant. On the 19th, it was reported that the brigade had withdrawn from Avdiivka.

On February 28, the brigade fought in Krasnohorivka. The brigade's 1st and 2nd assault battalions drove Russian occupation forces out of the southeastern outskirts of the city, which they had seized the day before. In a short period of time the Russians had managed to fortify their positions and prepare for a prolonged defense.

On March 4, 2024, the brigade's 1st self-propelled artillery battalion struck Russian forces in the Avdiivka direction. They were moving through a tree line at night and were hit mostly by cluster munitions.

In early June 2024, it became known that the brigade had begun recruiting convicts. However, unlike other brigades, separate units were not created for the convicts — they were integrated into existing ones.

1st Assault Battalion
2nd Assault Battalion
1st Mechanized Battalion
2nd Mechanized Battalion
1st Rifle Battalion
2nd Rifle Battalion
Tank Battalion
Brigade Artillery Group
1st Self-Propelled Artillery Battalion
2nd Artillery Battalion
Anti-Tank Battalion
Anti-Aircraft Missile and Artillery Battalion
Unmanned Systems Battalion
Ground Robotic Systems Company
Engineer Support Group
Separate Sniper Platoon "GAR"
Electronic Warfare Company
Signal Company
Color Guard Service
Medical Service

Tanks: T-64BV, T-72AV

Artillery: AS-90, "Msta-S"

MLRS: Bastion-01

IFVs: BMP-2

Armored personnel carriers: BTR-82, M113, FV432 Mark 2, YPR-765

MRAP: International MaxxPro

Mortars: 240mm M-240 mortar

MANPADS: FIM-92 Stinger

Grenade launchers: RDS40-AGL

Air defense systems: mobile SAM systems with R-73 missiles

Command vehicles: M577

Engineering vehicles: FV434, FV180

LOCKER workshop

Airborne vehicles: Wiesel

During its formation, the "AZOV-Kyiv" territorial defense unit had no separate insignia. In May 2022, after being reformed into the "Azov" Special Operations Forces regiment, the unit's fighters received their own sleeve patch — three golden swords on a blue background, chosen in memory of the "Field of Swords" monument, erected near one of the Azov regiment's bases to honor those who fell during the Russian-Ukrainian war.

With the expansion into a brigade, the insignia was changed. The sleeve patch of the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade became a stylized "Idea of the Nation" symbol in an assault design, derived from the Azov regiment's sleeve patch and visually resembling three stripes. The assault "Idea of the Nation" symbol appears on the fighters' sleeve patches and on the unit's main banner.