After half a year of counterattack, what happened to Ukraine's 10 "iron fist" brigades?

Modern Ukrainian tanks and armored vehicles provided by NATO were destroyed by Russia on the Zaporizhia front (Photo: Reuters).

21st Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The 21st Brigade was newly established in early 2023, with typical equipment being Strv 122 tanks (a modified Leopard 2A5 version for Finland) and CV90 infantry fighting vehicles supported by Sweden; however, the number of both types of equipment is not large, previously there were only 10 and only one tank company could be formed.

Later, the 21st Brigade had 50 more CV90 vehicles, enough to equip two deficient battalions, so the brigade's main equipment remained multinational.

The 21st Brigade was originally part of the strategic reserve forces under the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army. As the Russian army intensified its offensive on the northern front, the brigade was reinforced from Zaporizhia to Kupyansk in the Kharkov region.

Because the fighting intensity on the Northern Front was generally not high, the main equipment and combat capabilities of the 21st Brigade remained basically intact, but recently the brigade suffered the loss of a Strv 122 tank.

32nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The new brigade was formed in early 2023 and is equipped with Soviet tanks, along with old armored vehicles and wheeled vehicles donated by the West. Among the “NATO-standard” brigades, this one is probably the most poorly equipped and has the worst combat performance.

After Moscow intensified its offensive on the northern front, along with the 21st Brigade, the 32nd Brigade was one of the first Ukrainian army reserves to be sent to the Kupyansk front. Due to lack of combat experience and poor equipment, they initially suffered heavy losses from the enemy.

Fortunately, the intensity of fighting on the Northern front was not high, the brigade's losses were not too great, so it was still able to fight and remained the reserve force of the front.

33rd Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The brigade has actually been around for a long time and is considered one of the main reserve units of the Ukrainian army, but it has never been fully formed. Earlier this year, the 33rd Motorized Infantry Brigade was activated and formed in line with the new force building trend, with Leopard 2A4 tanks as its main equipment.

The Ukrainian army has received a relatively large number of these tanks, so the brigade's tank battalion has been fully staffed. Images of a large number of Ukrainian Leopard 2A4 tanks appearing on the Internet are actually from the 33rd Brigade.

After the major counterattack began, the 33rd Brigade would follow the 47th Brigade into battle, but the main losses would be borne by the 47th Brigade, so the 33rd Brigade's losses could be considered acceptable.

And interestingly enough, the 33rd Brigade seemed to have suffered the least damage, so the brigade participated in the fighting at every stage.

Even now, the 33rd Brigade is still fighting in Rabotino - Verbovoe, their Leopard 2A4 tanks have not been burned much, so the basic combat capabilities are still maintained.

37th Marine Brigade

The brigade was newly established in early 2023, with typical equipment including French AMX10-RC wheeled tanks and American Stryker armored vehicles.

After the major counterattack began, the brigade deployed in the direction of Veliko Novosilka and, using large-scale wheeled assault groups, quickly attacked Russian positions.

However, in the face of a counterattack by Russian reserve forces, the brigade failed in combat and lost a large number of weapons during the retreat. Many weapons, including AMX10-RC tanks, were captured by the Russian military and then displayed to the public.

The 37th Brigade, after suffering losses at the front line, recovered its combat strength very slowly. Now, after the entire Ukrainian marine force was transferred to Kherson, no detachment of this unit was seen participating in the river crossing operation.

Perhaps the brigade is replenishing its numbers, weapons and being used as a reserve force.

46th Air Assault Brigade

This brigade existed in the Ukrainian army's organization chart before 2022, but in reality it was not officially operational. After the conflict broke out, the brigade was organized and trained in the UK, then received the earliest Western-supported weapons and was considered the first "NATO standard" brigade.

Because this brigade was formed earlier, it participated in the counterattack on Kherson and Bakhmut and suffered very heavy losses.

After the withdrawal from Bakhmut, the brigade was rested and replenished in the rear and was placed in the strategic reserve of the Ukrainian army. The brigade's equipment was relatively complex, without typical special weapons, but mostly wheeled equipment supplied by the West.

The brigade entered the Orekhov battlefield in August. After two months of hard fighting, the infantry suffered heavy losses, but since the Ukrainian army at this stage did not use motor vehicles as assault weapons, the number of remaining vehicles was quite significant.

At this time, Brigade 46 is in the process of replenishing its troops, the main force will enter a period of rest to restore combat effectiveness.

47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The brigade was expanded in early 2023 on the basis of the 47th Battalion. Its typical equipment is the Leopard 2A6 tank and the Bradley M2A2 infantry fighting vehicle. Unlike most other "NATO standard" brigades in the Ukrainian army, the 47th Brigade's equipment is relatively uniform. Almost all of the Leopard 2A6 tanks received by the Ukrainian army are concentrated in this brigade, and a total of 21 Leopard 2A6 tanks are assigned to a tank-deficient battalion. While the 3 infantry battalions are equipped with a total of 99 Bradley M2A2 infantry fighting vehicles, the brigade has the highest expectations before the counteroffensive.

After the massive counterattack of the Ukrainian army began, the vanguard brigade advanced south of Orekhov, but faced the strongest defense line of the Russian army, it suffered serious losses.

Moreover, the Ukrainian army abused the brigade, which exhausted the unit's capabilities.

After the actual counteroffensive campaign ended, the remaining units of the 47th Brigade were immediately sent to the Avdiivka front as reinforcements. The brigade did not have the opportunity to rest and restore its combat effectiveness.

However, the US had previously provided 32 more Bradley M2A2 infantry fighting vehicles, which was somewhat beneficial in supplementing the brigade's equipment.

82nd Air Assault Brigade

The brigade was formed in early 2023 and is one of Ukraine's most elite "NATO-standard" brigades. The brigade's typical weapons are the British-supported Challenger 2 tank, the US-supported Stryker armored vehicle and the German-supported Weasel infantry fighting vehicle.

Notably, there are 14 Challenger 2 tanks that can be organized into a tank company, 40 Weasels that can be organized into a battalion, and 90 Strykers, which can be organized into 3 battalions.

The 82nd Brigade is a strategic reserve brigade of the Ukrainian Army, equipped with both wheeled and tracked armored vehicles, with significant striking power and the ability to conduct rapid pursuit operations. It was not until August that the unit was deployed on the Rabotino front.

Although the Ukrainian Army limited the use of armored vehicles at this time, the commander of the 82nd Brigade "still dared" to use a large number of Stryker vehicles in combat, but basically did not use Challenger 2 tanks. Especially after 2 Challenger 2s were damaged in the first combat operation, it stopped participating in battles.

Currently, the 82nd Brigade is the main force in the Verbovoe direction, still fighting at Rabotino - Verbovoe, often organizing rapid attacks at the company and platoon level.

116th Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The brigade was formed in early 2023. Although it is nominally a "NATO standard" brigade, its main weapons are actually Soviet weapons. Their tanks are Soviet tanks "acquired" by Ukraine, and the infantry uses BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles, but both types are sufficient in number.

Regarding artillery firepower, in addition to 10 122mm 2S1 guns, there are also 12 155mm AS-90 self-propelled guns supported by the UK; so the artillery firepower is relatively good.

The brigade, as a reserve force for the campaign, was originally expected to enter combat after the opening force successfully captured the bridgehead, with the mission of breaking through and breaking through Moscow's main defense line at Tomak.

However, due to the failure to launch a breakthrough, the brigade had to enter combat at the end of July. Since the first battle applied the mechanized cluster breakthrough method, the brigade suffered heavy losses.

Currently, except for some units of the brigade still participating in the fighting in the southern direction of Orekhov, the main force is resting and recovering its combat capabilities and guarding against Russian counterattacks here.

117th Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The brigade was formed in early 2023. The brigade's tank battalion is equipped with PT-91 tanks (a Polish version of the T-72), relatively complex infantry vehicles, including M113 armored vehicles and some old combat vehicles. Overall, the brigade's equipment is relatively weak among Ukraine's "NATO standard" brigades. However, due to its relatively adequate numbers, its combat power is guaranteed.

The 117th Brigade is also a Ukrainian combat reserve brigade, undertaking the same tasks as the 116th Brigade. The time of entry into combat and the current situation are also similar.

Russia destroys Ukrainian Leopard 2 tank in Zaporizhia

118th Mechanized Infantry Brigade

The brigade was formed in early 2023. Its tank battalions are equipped with Polish-supported T-72 tanks and M113 armored personnel carriers.

Compared to "NATO-standard" brigades equipped with Western-style main weapons, the brigade's equipment is simply a combination of old Soviet and Western weapons.

Perhaps because of this situation, like the 116th and 117th brigades, the brigade's mission was to act as a reserve force, tasked with breaking into the main Russian defenses after the stronger brigades had completed their opening mission. However, due to having to enter combat early, the brigade suffered heavy losses at Rabotino.

Overall, it is not difficult to see that the "NATO standard" brigades suffered heavy losses in the recent counterattack. Currently, in the context of the end of the major counterattack, the Ukrainian army, in addition to continuing to use a number of brigades to maintain defense, has actually withdrawn to the rear to consolidate.

Since the equipment of some of these brigades is still quite good, restoring their combat effectiveness after future reinforcements will not be a problem. Since they have a lot of combat experience, the future performance of these brigades after their strength is restored will be of great interest to Russia.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/sau-nua-nam-phan-cong-10-lu-doan-nam-dam-thep-cua-ukraine-gio-ra-sao-20231106155942693.htm