"Skelya" Has Grown to the Size of a Division – Military Ombudswoman Proposed Reorganizing the Regiment

Military ombudswoman Olha Reshetylova advocated for the reorganization of the 425th Separate Assault Regiment "Skelya," emphasizing the need for managerial decisions regarding the unit.

According to her, she learned about possible beatings and abuse of servicemen in "Skelya" back in May-June 2025. Initially, it concerned the beating of a journalist transferred to the regiment, then a chaplain of an adjacent brigade, and later the command of a battalion being reformed into the 425th Separate Assault Regiment. After that, she noted, it became clear that the problem was systemic.

In June 2025, representatives of the Office of the President and the Military Law Enforcement Service conducted an inspection at the unit's training ground. According to Reshetylova, 22 servicemen were taken from the regiment who provided testimonies about beatings, confirmed by polygraph tests. They also identified a group of instructors suspected of organizing abuse at the training grounds.

At the same time, the ombudswoman stated that after the inspection, no proper measures were taken to hold these individuals accountable and to prevent similar incidents in the future. She noted that the investigation results are still absent.

According to Reshetylova, since the establishment of the Military Ombudsman’s Office, nine reports of possible crimes in the "Skelya" regiment have been sent to law enforcement agencies.

She also reported that the office established cooperation with the unit's command for prompt response to servicemen's complaints. In particular, agreements were reached to prevent individuals identified as systemic violators of military personnel rights from working with the personnel, and regular communication between soldiers and their families was ensured. According to the ombudswoman, complaints from relatives about lack of contact with servicemen decreased by 73%.

Separately, Reshetylova drew attention to the problem of servicemen with dependencies. She said that a few months ago, about two thousand people receiving substitution maintenance therapy were identified in the unit. She noted that according to current regulations, such individuals should not serve in assault units.

Commenting on the situation in the regiment, the ombudswoman emphasized that "Skelya" in terms of personnel size actually corresponds to a division but continues to operate within the regiment’s staffing structure.

"The size of 'Skelya,' as has already been said, is approximately that of a division. At the same time, they still have the staffing of a regiment. Managing such a number of personnel with a regiment’s staff is simply unrealistic; even if you want to control everything, it is impossible. Managerial decisions are definitely needed here," she said.

Reshetylova said she discussed this issue with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi. According to her, he believes the situation could improve if a separate command for assault units is created.

At the same time, the ombudswoman herself opposes the creation of a separate branch of the military. In her opinion, this could lead to the scaling up of negative practices and human rights violations. Instead, she proposed creating separate assault units within each corps.

"I consistently believe that creating a separate branch of the military will lead to the scaling of negative practices and human rights violations. From my point of view, the optimal solution would be to create separate assault units in each corps. This would allow the corps commander to exercise control and shape the culture of behavior and discipline within the unit. In any case, decisions regarding assault units must be well-considered and thought out," emphasized the ombudswoman.

Recall that the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights of Ukraine, Dmytro Lubinets, announced an investigation into information about possible serious violations of servicemen’s rights in the 425th Separate Assault Regiment "Skelya."

As reported by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), to verify the presented information, SBI investigators entered relevant data into the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations under Part 5 of Article 426-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — abuse of power or official authority by a military official committed under martial law conditions, causing serious consequences.

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