By Gennadiy Georgiyenko and Ruslan Goriachenko
All-Ukrainian Trade Union of the National Police of Ukraine
The war unleashed by Russia has defined new and unexpected roles for the Ukrainian police, forcing some officers to swap patrol cars for trenches.
The United Assault Brigade of the National Police of Ukraine, called ‘Lyut’ – translating to ‘rage’ in English – is a new model of a militarised police unit.
The main tasks of the brigade include repelling and containing armed aggression against Ukraine, conducting assault operations, neutralising enemy sabotage and reconnaissance groups and illegal armed formations, aerial reconnaissance, identifying enemy positions, and eliminating hostile forces.
More than 15,000 officers of the National Police are directly involved in combat missions.
Dressed in camouflage and armed with rifles and grenade launchers, police officers fighting in the east look like regular soldiers and perform many similar tasks, but they do in fact belong to the assault brigade, Lyut.
Officers not directly engaged in repelling and containing the armed aggression carry out other crucial missions – evacuating civilians, demining, manning checkpoints, hunting down Russian saboteurs, and documenting war crimes.
“In some villages on the front line, the police are the only representatives of the state”
Pilots of special police helicopters, initially hired before the invasion for civilian medical evacuation, now transport wounded soldiers to hospitals.
Officers from KORD, Ukraine’s special forces unit, take turns serving on front lines, including in mobile air defence units.
In some villages on the front line, the police are the only representatives of the state.
A new mission for the police is documenting crimes committed during the war.
Investigators and forensic experts operate in populated areas, recording the aftermath of shelling, torture, and mass killings.
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as of May 14, 2025, investigators from the National Police of Ukraine have initiated 153,473 criminal proceedings concerning crimes committed by soldiers of the Russian Federation.
Of those, 137,291 are related to war crimes; 9,341 involve encroachments on Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability; 4,421 collaborationism; and 323 are related to treason.
Crimes against children are tracked separately: 625 children killed, 1,947 wounded, 2,230 missing, 19,546 deported to Russia. A total of 40,343 children have been located and 1,307 have been returned.
There are 128 criminal proceedings related to sexual violence committed by Russian military personnel.
White Angels is a unit created in December 2022 – the first evacuation groups of the National Police operating along the front lines.
These officers risk their lives to save others. The units work under extremely dangerous conditions – under constant shelling, with night vision equipment, often just steps away from the enemy.
Russian forces continue to bombard Ukrainian territories.
Every day, villages are under fire; fires erupt in residential homes during the night. The number of people wanting to evacuate grows daily.
Since their founding, the White Angels have rescued more than 10,000 people from the hottest conflict zones; more than 1,000 of them children.
“The White Angels work under extremely dangerous conditions – under constant shelling, with night vision equipment, often just steps away from the enemy”
They have transported more than 500 seriously wounded and sick individuals to hospitals and delivered more than 700 tonnes of humanitarian aid.
As part of international cooperation, representatives of the National Police take working trips to partner countries, participating in events dedicated to improving crime-fighting knowledge, enhancing professional skills, and exchanging experiences with international colleagues in various fields.
The National Police has developed investigation algorithms aligned with international standards through training organised by foreign partners.
As a result, the National Police has documented hundreds of thousands of war crimes, issued thousands of indictments, referred cases to courts, and already secured the first convictions.
These verdicts serve as a foundation for the National Police’s work both in national and international courts.
Despite Russia’s full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian police not only maintain effective cooperation with Interpol, but also continue to expand international cooperation, strengthening Ukraine’s position within the global security framework.
