, founder and first commander of the battalion, in his trademark
balaclava Background In February 2014,
Donetsk Oblast Militsiya head Roman Romanov ceded his powers to pro-Russian separatists;
Pavel Gubarev, leader of the Donbass pro-Russian separatists, seized the
Donetsk Oblast Council building. At the beginning of March, separatist sentiment in
Donetsk led to the creation of the oblast's pro-
Maidan self-defense forces by pro-Ukrainian citizens to protect pro-Maidan protests calling for the creation of a separatist
Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). The force protected Ukrainian citizens from violence by the Russian special services and separatists.
Semen Semenchenko founded a group of local volunteers to defend Ukrainian territorial integrity due to the weakness of the
Ukrainian Armed Forces and the capitulation of many local officials to the separatists. The Donbas self-defense forces asked the leadership of
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and the
military commissariat to create a territorial defense battalion. They succeeded only after a similar proposal to the administration of Donetsk Oblast was rejected. On 15 April, recruitment of volunteers and officers into the new Donbas Battalion began. A charitable foundation for the battalion was created, and Ukrainians nationwide donated aid and money for the unit's logistical needs. The battalion, based in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, is open to citizens with licensed weapons.
Non-governmental armed formation (April – June 2014) In March 2014, a self-defense unit in
Donetsk Oblast was created. After the first battles with
DPR forces, the creation of the Donbas Volunteer Battalion was announced. The commander of the squad was
Semenchenko, who announced the recruitment of volunteers for the unit on his
Facebook page. Within a few days, about 600 volunteers signed up for the Donbas Battalion; by the end of April, the unit began operation in Donetsk Oblast. Battalion members provided assistance in moving activists who were in danger and collected information about coordinators of pro-Russian rallies and checkpoints. The battalion participated in its first operation to capture and destroy civilian checkpoints on 1 May, destroying a separatist checkpoint in
Krasnoarmiysk. Three
Kalashnikovs were seized and 15 civilians were captured. The battalion commander was offered a location for a base in Novopidhorodne, at the border of Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk Oblasts. After destroying the Krasnoarmiysk checkpoint, the fighters returned to their base. A few hours later, Russian mercenaries arrived in three buses to assault the Donbas base. The Donbas fighters were armed with small-caliber rifles and grenades. The Russian attempt to assault the base failed because a Ukrainian military helicopter arrived, forcing the attackers to retreat.
armoured personnel carrier On 11 May, a subdivision of the battalion stationed in
Mariupol assisted the
Ukrainian National Guard in the recapture of Mariupol's police station. Control of the district was returned to Ukraine, and its
flag was raised over the administration building. Educational work was carried out with the militiamen who had given control of the region to DPR forces.
Volnovakha Raion was placed under military occupation, and the Donbas battalion supervised elections. With the region under government control, branches of the largely-defunct
Party of Regions and the banned
Communist Party were forced to dissolve. On 21 May, battalion commander Semenchenko referred to
Donetsk State Automobile Inspection of Ukraine employees who defected to the DPR side as "traitors". He said the same about those who were serving with DPR soldiers at the checkpoints, accompanying vehicle columns, and guarding administrative buildings. Semenchenko demanded that they hand over their arms and leave Donetsk Oblast by noon the following day, threatening to "eliminate" them if they continued to cooperate with the DPR. in 2014|upright=1.3|alt=Eight armed, uniformed soldiers, four kneeling and four standingBy 21 May, the battalion had taken control of the administration buildings of four districts: Velikonovosilkivsky,
Volodarsky,
Dobropolsky and Aleksandrivsky. This operation secured polling stations for the
2014 Ukrainian presidential election. On 22 May 2014, Semenchenko announced that Ukrainian control of
Volodarske district had been re-established. On 23 May, Semenchenko's unit was ambushed in
Karlivka by a 25-soldier company of the Vostok Battalion. Semenchenko reported that four members of the Donbas Battalion were killed; one died from injuries, about 20 were wounded, and an undisclosed number were captured. The Vostok Battalion lost eleven soldiers.
Special-purpose National Guard of Ukraine battalion (June 2014 – October 2016) After the battle near
Karlivka, the battalion leadership learned that Russian fighters had obtained heavy weapons in addition to small arms. It became clear that the
Ukrainian Armed Forces were not providing sufficient assistance to Ukrainian volunteer detachments. The armed-forces units, five kilometers from Karlivka, did not assist the Ukrainian volunteers. Because of this, Semenchenko accepted
Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov's proposal to merge his battalion into the
National Guard of Ukraine; this armed the battalion and gave it legal status. It also provided an opportunity to coordinate its actions with armed-forces units, the NGU and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. On 1 June, battalion commander Semenchenko spoke at a
veche (a
popular assembly) in Kyiv's
Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square). He called on participants to join the battalion to protect Ukraine's territorial integrity. About 600 people arrived at the Novy Petrovtsy training range, a base of Ukrainian Army Unit 3027, on the first day of recruitment. After this, several more volunteer enrollments were held in the Maidan Nezalezhnosti. During an enrollment on 8 June 2014, it was reported that ten soldiers from the Presidential Regiment joined the battalion. On 3 June, while a decision was being made to send volunteer battalions to the
anti-terrorist operation zone, the battalion was asked to stand guard near the
Verkhovna Rada to support the
Internal Troops of Ukraine who could not offer adequate protection. The Donbas fighters faced the Verkhovna Rada building, demonstrating that they were on the side of the people. On 4 June 2014 in
Izium, a meeting of Ukraine's political, military and police leadership was held to coordinate the volunteer Donbas and
Azov Battalions with other military units. The meeting was attended by
Verkhovna Rada chair Oleksandr Turchynov,
Minister of Internal Affairs Arseniy Avakov, by representatives of law-enforcement agencies, and commanders of both battalions. Armored vehicles manufactured by the
Malyshev plant were displayed, and
Dozor-B armored combat vehicles would be supplied to the Donbas Battalion. Semenchenko said that with such vehicles he would be ready to liberate Donetsk, but his battalion never received them. The plan was to first liberate Donbas from Russian mercenaries, then involve the
Krym Battalion in the liberation of the
Autonomous Republic of Crimea from
Russian occupation. After a military meeting in
Slavyansk, it was decided to send a Donbas Battalion
company to the ATO zone. The unit received no vehicles, fuel or adequate equipment. At Semenchenko's request, volunteers, entrepreneurs and ordinary Ukrainians gathered what they could and the company went to the front. On 4 July 2014, a battalion company took part in the liberation of
Mykolayivka. After this operation, the Russian mercenaries began to retreat from Slavyansk. The battalion's
Yaroslav Markevych, who led a group of
unmanned aerial vehicles, was the first informant that the city could be entered. Battalion fighters in
Artemivsk took an active role in liberating the city from
DPR forces, responding to night-time attacks, building checkpoints, and conducting operations to clear the region. Battalion units patrolled the surrounding areas of Artemivsk and
Horlivka. Only one
IFV of the promised armored vehicles was allocated to the Donbas Battalion, which had a
KrAZ provided by volunteers. Other equipment included two CIT vehicles which Donbas fighters retook from Russian mercenaries during the first minutes of the battle. The volunteer battalions accused the Ministry of Defense of failing to provide necessary
heavy-weapons support. On 17 August 2014, the Donbas Battalion and other units participated in the assault on
Ilovaysk. The unit entered the city and took up positions at School Number 14 near the railway, as ordered, but other units failed to fulfill their obligations. According to the Verkhovna Rada Temporary Investigative Commission interim report, On 19 August 2014, Semenchenko received shrapnel wounds during the assault on Ilovaysk. Fierce fighting continued for ten days. On 29 August, leaving Ilovaysk via the Green Corridor, a Ukrainian military group was ambushed and shelled by the Russian rmy. Ninety-eight soldiers were captured, and more than 100 were injured. Official estimates were 366 dead, 249 wounded, and 158 missing during the fighting for Ilovaysk and while leaving the Green Corridor. During September, October and November, the battalion was withdrawn from the ATO zone for a combat coordination exercise. Some of the fighters were sent to
Zolochiv to undergo NCO training. A large number of volunteers joined the battalion in September, which then deployed to the training camp of the 93rd Separate Mechanized brigade in
Cherkaske (which had about 300 recruits). At the end of October, battalion personnel (including the new recruits) were relocated to
Kyiv Oblast for a combat coordination exercise. The battalion could not move to the combat area at that time out of fear that prisoners held by the Russians would be executed. On 18 November, the first rotation of the Donbas Battalion to the Peace Valley of
Luhansk Oblast took place. They were assigned to a local support point to assist the
Armed Forces of Ukraine. The battalion cleared sabotage reconnaissance groups of Russian mercenaries, and supported the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade on the Bakhmut route. On 15 December, the second rotation took place. From 15 to 25 December 2014, the battalion organized a blockade of
Akhmetov humanitarian convoys going to
Lugansk People's Republic-occupied territories to push for the exchange of its members held prisoner by Russian troops. Volunteer divisions, including Dnipro-1,
Right Sector and
Aidar, also participated. Supplies of
tobacco and
vodka to Russian mercenaries were also blocked. The operation was successful; as a result of the blockade and negotiations, 97 soldiers from the battalion who had been captured during the Ilovaysk operation were released on 26 December. The battalion marched to Kyiv on 11 January 2015, demanding to be sent into combat, and a column surrounded to the Ministry of Internal Affairs building. Semenchenko said, "We ask Arsen Avakov, Minister of Internal Affairs, to support the Donbas Battalion fighters and send them to the ATO zone, where we can effectively fight sabotage and reconnaissance groups". That month, some members who had been expelled from the battalion due to misconduct began to accuse Semenchenko of criminal behavior. Most battalion members supported him: On 13 January 2015, two companies of the battalion went to the ATO zone. However, armored vehicles which had been given to the battalion proved to be unsuitable for military tasks. The battalion reported to 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade headquarters. On 27 January, a battalion company deployed to the battlefield in an early rotation. Four days later, Semenchenko experienced
shell shock during the operation to relieve the Svityaz battalion. In January and February 2015, the Donbas Battalion participated in an attack on Russian-fortified areas near
Debaltseve. During the fight for Vuglegirsk on 1 February, the battalion lost four soldiers. On 9 February, the battalion and the Armed Forces of Ukraine blocked the Debaltsevo-
Artemivsk highway. Three days later, Armed Forces of Ukraine units took control of part of Logvinovo and opened the Artemivsk-Debaltsevo highway; the battalion cleared the village and an adjacent section of the highway. The following morning, the mop-up operation was halted and the Russians counterattacked with armored troops. In the battles for Logvinovo, the battalion destroyed a Russian platoon, a tank and an
IFV; three soldiers died, and four were wounded. By midday on 13 February, the Donbas battalion and the AFU had killed about 50 separatist fighters near Logvinovo. Seventeen Russian mercenaries were captured, and were later transferred to the
SSU for exchange. The Donbas Battalion and the AFU protected a supply line, and the battalion captured a multi-purpose
light-armored vehicle and a
122mm mortar. During the 15–16 February battle of Shyrokyne, over 100 separatist troops were killed and 10 armoured vehicles were destroyed by Donbas, Azov and AFU units. In the late evening of 16 February, the Ukrainian military drove armed men who were not identified as AFU soldiers out of one of two heights near Shyrokyne. Earlier, 14 Donbas Battalion fighters escaped from an encirclement of separatist forces in Shyrokyne. On 18 February, near Shyrokyne, mercenary-supported separatists began shelling Ukrainian positions with two
mortars. Two hours later, a separatist armed group withdrew towards
Novoazovsk. Another illegal armed group moved north-east from the eastern outskirts of Shyrokyne with tank cover. On the evening of 16 February, one soldier in a Donbas Battalion platoon was killed and four were wounded. The next night, a battalion column was ambushed and three soldiers were killed. On 7 March, the battalion encountered a Russian Special Forces sabotage-reconnaissance group; three Russians were killed, and others were captured. The Russians opened tank fire, and a Donbas Battalion soldier was killed. A separatist barracks was destroyed in Shyrokyne on 9 April by the Azov Regiment and the Donbas Battalion during their response to a Russian mercenary attack. After the 25 April bombardment of an
ambulance near Shyrokyne, a wounded battalion soldier died on the way to hospital. On 2 May, another attack by pro-Russian separatists was defeated by the battalion; three military personnel were wounded. At 13:05, during a battle, a battalion soldier was wounded in the head by sniper fire. During 3 May fighting in Shyrokyne, a battalion soldier was killed. On 24 May, in Shyrokyne, a battalion soldier was killed and another wounded. During the night of 26 May, a battalion anti-tank platoon destroyed a
Kamaz carrying separatist troops and ammunition; one battalion soldier was wounded. On 19 July in Shyrokyne, the battalion seized a damaged
BMP-2 from Russian mercenaries and towed it to the Ukrainian Army position. From May to July 2015 in
Mariupol, rallies against the city's
demilitarization in accordance with the
Minsk Protocol were held. Demilitarization did not take place, but at the end of July 2015 the battalion was withdrawn from Shyrokyne's front positions. The Donbas and Azov volunteer battalions were replaced by the
Ukrainian Marine Corps.
Since October 2016: NGO region When most of the battalion, Semenchenko and second commander Anatoliy Vinogrodskiy were demobilized into the reserve in 2016, it became a
non-governmental organization to protect Ukrainian citizens and fight corruption. The battalion began to combat illegal construction and the unauthorized development of green space in
Kyiv and its suburbs, expose criminal activity by the police, and provide legal and media support to political prisoners in July 2016. It blocked rail freight traffic to occupied territories during the Blockade of Trade with Occupants and protected a protest camp on Hrushevskyi Street during the Rally for Political Reform. Donbas Battalion veterans monitor court proceedings concerning volunteer soldiers throughout Ukraine.
Full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 As
2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis, the Donbass Battalion deployed in the
Luhansk Oblast in preparation for a possible war. As the
Russian invasion of Ukraine started, the Battalion was deployed to multiple locations across the
Eastern front. As part of the
Offensive Guard initiative, Donbass' parent unit 15th Regiment was expanded and renamed to the
18th Sloviansk Brigade. ==Human-rights violations==