114th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade

114th Guards Enakievo-Danube Order "For the Defense of Donetsk" Motor Rifle Brigade (2023–present)11th Guards Enakievo-Danube Order "For the Defense of Donetsk" Motor Rifle Regiment (2015–2023)Vostok Battalion (2014–2015) 114-я гвардейская мотострелковая Енакиево-Дунайская, ордена "За оборону Донецка" бригада Sleeve patch of the 114th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade.svg 250 May 2014–present Donetsk People's Republic (2014–2022)Russia (2022–present) East Brigade (Бригада «Восток») 22px 51st Combined Arms Army Donetsk People's Republic DPR People's Militia ru Народная милиция Донецкой Народной Республики (2014–2022)RUS (2022–present) Brigade DonetskMUN 08818 War in Donbas First Battle of Donetsk Airport Battles for Karlivka Battle of Yasynuvata Battle of Avdiivka (2017) Russian invasion of Ukraine 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive 20px Order «For the Defense of Donetsk» Enakievo-Danube Yuri Zazykin114 Бригада https://t.me/mo114rf/83 2025-01-01 Telegram Alexander Khodakovsky Notable commanders 200px Flag used by the members of the unit 200px Former flag The 114th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade (ru 114-я гвардейская мотострелковая бригада, 114 омсбр; Military Unit Number 08818) or Vostok Brigade (ru Бригада «Восток») is a military unit of Russian Ground Forces. Until January 1, 2023, it was part of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). It is attached to the 51st Donetsk Combined Arms Army. The brigade was created by Alexander Khodakovsky. History War in Donbas thumb|Emblem used by the Vostok Battalion in 2014|left The Vostok Battalion was formed in early May 2014 by Alexander Khodakovsky, a former commander in a Donetsk detachment of Ukraine's anti-terrorism special forces unit Alpha, part of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).Министр безопасности ДНР Ходаковский подал в отставку ru 16 July 2014 23 January 2025 Vzglyad https://vz.ru/news/2014/7/16/695728.html In May 2014, the Vostok Battalion took part in battles with the Ukrainian army in the village of Karlivka and at the Donetsk airport. The battalion occupied the airport on 26 May, though the operation was characterized by Vzglyad as unsuccessful and a trap, as the newspaper claimed that the unit lost at least 60 men killed in action from Ukrainian airstrikes and helicopter strikes.Министр безопасности ДНР Ходаковский подал в отставку ru 16 July 2014 23 January 2025 Vzglyad https://vz.ru/news/2014/7/16/695728.html On 29 May, members of the Vostok Battalion stormed the Donetsk separatist headquarters, expelling a "motley band" of pro-Russian rebels that occupied it since March, accusing them of looting local supermarkets. According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the raid was widely seen as a part of an attempt by a Moscow-connected faction to take control over the insurgency in the Donbas from "ragtag" elements associated with Igor Girkin and Alexander Borodai, with Mark Galeotti characterizing the battalion as a "more disciplined" force associated with Russian military intelligence.23 January 2025 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Vostok Battalion, A Powerful New Player In Eastern Ukraine 30 May 2014 Claire Bigg https://www.rferl.org/a/vostok-battalion-a-powerful-new-player-in-eastern-ukraine/25404785.html On 5 June 2014, a convoy of 200 Vostok militiamen set off from Donetsk with the aim of capturing a Ukrainian border checkpoint at Marynivka. The convoy was led by Khodakovsky and numbered 15 vehicles, including an armored personnel carrier, trucks mounted with anti-aircraft heavy machine guns, and Ladas. The convoy encountered no Ukrainian government forces on the way to Marynivka. According to separatist intelligence, the Ukrainian border guards stationed there were demoralized and prepared to give up their position without fighting. In reality, the checkpoint had been reinforced by the Ukrainian military. A nearly four-hour firefight broke out, destroying the border post and leaving two Vostok militants dead and several wounded on both sides. The separatists retreated across the Russian border at Kuybyshevo, where they were disarmed, interrogated, and imprisoned by Russian border guards. A few days before the clash at Marynivka, Khodakovsky had claimed that the battalion consisted of 1,000 men.https://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/01/us-ukraine-crisis-vostok-idUSKBN0EC1LL20140601/ More foreign fighters break cover among Ukraine separatists 23 January 2025 1 June 2014 Gabriela Baczynska Reuters However, The Times journalist Mark Franchetti reported shortly after the battle that the battalion numbered fewer than 400 men, and that it had lost 50 in combat at the Donetsk airport in May.https://www.thetimes.com/article/pinned-to-the-ground-by-blizzard-of-bullets-mj7m5ms6ktw The Times 24 January 2025 8 June 2014 Mark Franchetti Pinned to the ground by blizzard of bullets Mark Franchetti Around the same time, Andrew Roth of The New York Times reported that the battalion had over 500 fighters.A Separatist Militia in Ukraine With Russian Fighters Holds a Key The New York Times Andrew Roth 4 June 2014 https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/05/world/europe/in-ukraine-separatist-militia-with-russian-fighters-holds-a-key.html 24 January 2025 Vzgylad called Vostok "one of the most professional" units of the Donetsk People's Republic militia. In early June 2014, the Vostok Battalion was described by Reuters journalist Gabriela Baczynska as a "well-organized" and "heavily armed" unit that was "seeking to lead" the pro-Russian separatist cause. By June 2014, the unit was headquartered in a former Ukrainian army base in the northeastern part of the city of Donetsk, and fighters from Russia, North Ossetia, South Ossetia, Chechnya, and former Soviet countries in Central Asia had joined its ranks. However, according to Franchetti, the battalion mostly consisted of locals from eastern Ukraine with no previous military experience who "had watched too much Channel One Russia and Russia-24" (Russian state television programming) and believed the Donbas needed to be defended from fascism.ru 24 January 2025 Марк Франкетти: «Нет никакой разницы между ментами и Кохом» https://www.colta.ru/articles/society/3577-mark-franketti-net-nikakoy-raznitsy-mezhdu-mentami-i-kohom 17 June 2014 Светлана Рейтер Colta.ru According to Igor Girkin, Vostok was responsible for the defense of Yasynuvata, Avdiivka, Pisky and Karlivka during the active phase of the war in Donbas.15 January 2025 ru https://zavtra.ru/blogs/kto-tyi-strelok «Кто ты, «Стрелок»?» 20 November 2014 Завтра.ру Alexander Prokhanov Alexander Prokhanov Towards the end of 2014 the battalion was first upgraded to a "Special Brigade" (Спецбригада), and then in 2015 changed again to the 11th Separate Enakievo-Danube Motor Rifle Regiment "Vostok" within DPR 1st Army Corps.Crowther Edward R. Armed formations of the Donetsk People's Republic, 2014-2022 Crowther Edward R. 2022 Helion & Company Limited 978-1-915070-66-1 War in Ukraine / Edward Crowther Warwick 44–45 In February 2015, Khodakovsky claimed that the battalion had lost 110 men killed and 172 wounded.The Guardian 24 January 2025 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/23/ukraine-separatists-soviet-holiday-mens-day-donetsk Ukraine separatists celebrate Soviet holiday in Donetsk Alec Luhn 23 February 2015 On 12 February 2016 the regiment was awarded the honorary designation "Guards". On 3 November 2018 the regiment was awarded the order "For the Defense of Donetsk".114-я мотострелковая бригада: участие в СВО, состав и вооружение 114th Motor Rifle Brigade: participation in the SMO, composition and armament https://amalantra.ru/114-motostrelkovaya-brigada/ 2024-10-30 amalantra.ru Russian invasion of Ukraine At some point, either in the fall of 2022, after the unit was replenished with mobilized soldiers, or in January 2023, during the entry of the 1st Army Corps into the Russian Armed Forces, the regiment was reformed into the 114th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade. During the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive, 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. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/12/world/europe/russia-ukraine-war.html 13 August 2023 Ukraine Makes 'Tactically Significant' Progress in Its Counteroffensive The New York Times 12 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230820093633/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/12/world/europe/russia-ukraine-war.html August 20, 2023 Santora Marc 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.Bailey Riley Barros George Wolkov Nicole Harward Christina Stepanenko Kateryna Kagan Frederick W. Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, August 6, 2023 https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-6-2023 Institute for the Study of War 7 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230812223527/https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-6-2023 August 12, 2023Bailey Riley Mappes Grace Evans Angelica Harward Christina Kagan Frederick W. 10 August 2023 Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, August 10, 2023 https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-10-2023 2023-08-11 Institute for the Study of War https://web.archive.org/web/20230823130833/https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-10-2023 August 23, 2023Wolkov Nicole Evans Angelica Bailey Riley Harward Christina Clark Mason Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, August 12, 2023 https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-12-2023 Institute for the Study of War 13 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230812223326/https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-12-2023 August 12, 2023 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.Mappes Grace Wolkov Nicole Hird Karolina Harward Christina Evans Angelica Clark Mason Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, August 15, 2023 https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-15-2023 Institute for the Study of War 16 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230819105252/https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-15-2023 August 19, 2023Polityuk Pavel Kelly Lidia Balmforth Tom Ukraine retakes southeast village of Urozhaine from Russian forces https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-says-recaptures-urozhaine-donetsk-region-russian-forces-2023-08-16/ Reuters 16 August 2023 16 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230823220755/https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-says-recaptures-urozhaine-donetsk-region-russian-forces-2023-08-16/ August 23, 2023Said-Moorhouse Lauren Stambaugh Alex Nechyporenko Kostan Ukraine reclaims village in Donetsk region from Russian troops amid grueling counteroffensive https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/16/europe/urozhaine-donetsk-ukraine-reclaims-intl/index.html CNN 16 August 2023 16 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230824031053/https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/16/europe/urozhaine-donetsk-ukraine-reclaims-intl/index.html August 24, 2023Axe David Ukrainian Cluster Shells Massacred Russian Troops Fleeing Urozhaine https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2023/08/14/ukrainian-cluster-shells-massacred-russian-troops-fleeing-urozhaine/?sh=1602bdcc3d94 Forbes 16 August 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230816142723/https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2023/08/14/ukrainian-cluster-shells-massacred-russian-troops-fleeing-urozhaine/?sh=1602bdcc3d94 August 16, 2023 On 17 February 2024 after the battle of Avdiivka, the brigade was thanked by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.http://kremlin.ru/events/president/letters/73485 Андрею Мордвичёву, генерал-полковнику February 17, 2024 Президент России 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.✙DeepState✙🇺🇦 https://t.me/DeepStateUA/20218 2024-08-28 Telegram References Category:Military units and formations established in 2014 Category:Military of the Donetsk People's Republic Category:Separatist forces of the war in Donbas