The Vostok Brigade (russian: Бригада «Восток») or 114th Separate Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade (russian: 114-я отдельная гвардейская мотострелковая бригада, 114 омсбр;
Military Unit Number 08818) is a military unit of Russian Ground Forces. Until January 1, 2023, it was part of the self-proclaimed
Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic ( rus, Донецкая Народная Республика, Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika, dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə; abbreviated as DPR or DNR, rus, ДНР) is a Territorial ...
(DPR). It is attached to the 51st Donetsk Combined Arms Army. The brigade was created and is commanded by
Alexander Khodakovsky. According to an interview with
The Washington Post, DPR president
Denis Pushilin, the battalion was formed by local separatists and has nothing to do with the
Chechen unit of the same name.
History
War in Donbas
The Vostok Brigade was formed in May 2014 by Alexander Khodakovsky. Khodakovsky was the former commander of Ukraine's
Alpha
Alpha (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἄλφα, ''álpha'', or ell, άλφα, álfa) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of one. Alpha is derived from the Phoenician letter aleph , whic ...
special unit of the
Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). During the
2014 insurgency in Donbas
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an unrele ...
, he defected to the
Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic ( rus, Донецкая Народная Республика, Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika, dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə; abbreviated as DPR or DNR, rus, ДНР) is a Territorial ...
. He later created the Vostok Battalion which was later expanded into a brigade.
Russian Invasion of Ukraine
During 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 ...
, the Vostok Brigade was in charge of defending the village of
Urozhaine which is on the border of the
Donetsk and
Zaporizhzhia Oblasts. The village was described by ''
The New York Times'' as a "stronghold" and an important part of the Russian defensive network on the Velyka Novosilka axis.
Despite this, Russian media and Khodakovsky himself made it clear that the strategically important village would be solely defended by the Vostok Brigade against multiple units from the
Ukrainian Marine Corps.
Fighting for the village began on 6 August 2023, and Khodakovsky announced that the Vostok Brigade would be withdrawing from the village on 15 August, stating that their defensive position had become untenable.
Ukraine announced the liberation of the settlement on 16 August, and has been noted using artillery to shell retreating members of the Vostok Brigade resulting in high casualties among Khodakovsky's troops.
On 17 February 2024 after the
Battle of Avdiivka, the brigade was thanked by the
.
Ukrainian analysts from
DeepState noted the resilience of the brigade claiming that it was able to conduct assault operations for 8 full months straight without withering down. The analysts suggested that this is due to extensive "hidden mobilization" that was able to replenish casualties.
References
{{reflist
Military units and formations established in 2014
Military of the Donetsk People's Republic
Separatist forces of the war in Donbas