The 37th Separate Marine Brigade ( uk, 37-ма окрема бригада морської піхоти, translit=37-ma okrema bryhada morsʹkoyi pikhoty; 37 ОБрМП, unit number A0216), is a marine infantry brigade of the Ukrainian Marine Corps of the

Armed Forces of Ukraine , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly known ...

. The brigade was part of the Ukrainian Navy until 23 May 2023.

History

The brigade was formed on January 12, 2023 as part of an expansion to the

Ukrainian Naval Infantry The Ukrainian Naval Infantry Corps ( uk, Морська піхота України, translit=Morsʹka pikhota Ukrayiny), also known as the Ukrainian Marines, is part of coastal defense troops of the Ukrainian Navy. It is used as a component part o ...

which saw the creation of four other new marine brigades. The 37th was established from a battalion of the 79th Air Assault Brigade and veteran officers from the

36th Marine Brigade The 36th Separate Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilynsky () The Brigade was formed in 2015 on the basis of units withdrawn from the occupied Crimea – 1st and 501st Marine Battalion, which were previously part of Ukrainian 3 ...

. The unit has been outfitted with a mix of both new western supplied equipment, and old soviet stockpiles. This includes Canadian

Roshel Senator The Roshel Senator is a wheeled armored car (military), military armoured car produced by Roshel of Canada, based on a Ford F-550 chassis. As an Armoured personnel carrier, APC, it is designed to protect against Small Arms and Light Weapons, s ...

s, British Mastiffs French

AMX-10 RC The AMX-10 RC is a French armoured fighting vehicle manufactured by GIAT for armoured reconnaissance purposes. Equipping French cavalry units since 1981, over 240 are still in service with the French Army as of 2021. In addition, 108 units were s ...

s and old soviet towed artillery and small arms. The unit was first reported in active combat in Novodonetske, a front-line settlement in the southern

Donetsk Oblast The Donetsk Oblast ( ukr, Донецька область, Donetska oblast, ), also referred to as Donechchyna ( ukr, Донеччина, links=no), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 mill ...

. They began to engage the DNR Militia's Vostok Battalion on June 3. Without armored support, the Brigade used an intricate web of cover artillery fire to have their troop transports get as close to Russian positions to facilitate attacks, before returning beyond Russian artillery range. Due to this, the unit has launched a slow, but consistent advance in the region during the opening of the

2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive In early June 2023, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine launched a counteroffensive against Russian forces occupying its territory with a long-term goal of breaching the frontlines. Efforts were made in many directions, primarily ...

. Due to the lineage of the

originating from loyal Ukrainian elements from the

Russian occupation of Crimea The Russian occupation of Crimea is an ongoing military occupation within Ukraine by the Russian Federation, which began on 20 February 2014 when the military-political, administrative, economic and social order of Russia was spread to the Aut ...

western media has speculated the Ukrainian Armed Forces intend to use the 37th, as well as its other four other new marine brigades, to launch a naval invasion of the peninsula, should southern Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts be liberated.

Structure

37th Marine Brigade (37 ОБрМП A4548). Commander Vitaliy Napkhanenko ** Headquarters & Services Company ** 1st Marine Battalion (

) ***Airborne Assault Company ***Fire Support Company ** 2nd Marine Battalion ***Airborne Assault Company ***Fire Support Company ** 505th_Separate_Marine_Battalion

505th Separate Marine Infantry Battalion (505 ОБМП A4635). Formed in Feb 28, 2023. Commander Lt. Col. Oleksandr Tonenchuk ** Tank Battalion (

). ** Brigade Artillery Group ( M109 howitzer,

2S1 Gvozdika The 2S1 ''Gvozdika'' (russian: link=no, 2С1 «Гвоздика», "Carnation") is a Soviet self-propelled howitzer based on the MT-LBu multi-purpose chassis, mounting a 122 mm 2A18 howitzer. "2S1" is its GRAU designation. An alternative Rus ...

) *** HQ and Artillery Reconnaissance Battery *** 1st Self-propelled Artillery Division, 1st SADn (122mm D30 howitzer) *** Marine Anti-tank Artillery Division (ПТРК 37 ОБрМП) ( MT-12 Rapira) ** Anti-Air Defense Missile Artillery Battalion ** Reconnaissance Company *** FPV Drone Unit **

Sniper A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

Company ** Electronic Warfare Company ** Signals Company ** Anti-Aircraft Radar Company ** Security Company ** Engineer Company ** Replacement and Maintenance Battery ** Logistics Company ** CBRN-defense Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear Company ** Medical Company ** Military Police Company ** 37th Marine Brigade Band

References

{{reflist Marine brigades of Ukraine Military units and formations established in 2023 2023 establishments in Ukraine Military units and formations of Ukraine in the Russian invasion of Ukraine