The Rapid Operational Response Unit, commonly abbreviated KORD, is a special purpose unit of the National Police of Ukraine. It is designed to respond to emergency situations, the level of which is so high and complex that it may exceed the capabilities of other

rapid reaction force A rapid reaction force is a military or police unit designed to respond in very short time frames to emergencies. When used in reference to police forces such as SWAT teams, the time frame is minutes, while in military applications, such as with t ...

s or operational search units.

History

KORD was created as a special police force for the then-recently created National Police of Ukraine. Recruitment and training started in 2015 and in 2016 the first units were formed. KORD received training from special police units from the United States, specially from the

DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic enf ...

and

US Marshals The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The force was also present at the Anti-Terrorist Operation in

Eastern Ukraine Eastern Ukraine or east Ukraine ( uk, Східна Україна, Skhidna Ukrayina; russian: Восточная Украина, Vostochnaya Ukraina) is primarily the territory of Ukraine east of the Dnipro (or Dnieper) river, particularly Khark ...

. KORD has been involved in fighting in the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, where the

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

KORD units ambushed Russian tanks and BMPs at the Kyiv offensive and at Brovary. For their actions, the KORD operators were awarded military awards by

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

Missions

Among the main missions of KORD are: * Developing, preparing, and conducting special operations to capture dangerous criminals; * Suppressing crimes committed by members of criminal groups; * Releasing hostages; * Providing force support in the conduct of operative-search actions; * Providing support to other police units to ensure superior firepower over offenders; * Taking part in anti-terrorist operations conducted by the Anti-terrorist Centre of the

Security Service of Ukraine The Security Service of Ukraine ( uk, Служба безпеки України, translit=Sluzhba bezpeky Ukrainy}) or SBU ( uk, СБУ, link=no) is the law enforcement authority and main intelligence and security agency of the Ukrainian ...

; * Studying, and summarizing domestic and foreign experience, as well as the methods of work of similar foreign units in this area; * Ensuring the implementation of security measures for persons involved in criminal proceedings

Gallery

File:СБА Варта спецоперація Київ 2017.jpg File:Спецпідрозділ КОРД.jpg File:CORD ukrainian special police training 12.jpg File:CORD ukrainian special police Varta APC 6.jpg File:CORD ukrainian special police 8.jpg

In popular culture

* KORD is featured in the opening scene of ''

Tenet A tenet is a synonym for axiom, one of the principles on which a belief or theory is based. Tenet may also refer to: Media * Tenet (band), a heavy metal band * TENET (ensemble), an American early music vocal and instrumental group * ''Tenet'' (f ...

'' (2020), attempting to stop a terrorist attack at the

opera.

References

External links

Official website
of National Police {{Authority control Ministry of Internal Affairs (Ukraine) Non-military counterterrorist organizations 2016 establishments in Ukraine