At dawn they were in their forward positions, firing artillery at the Russian troops. Hours later, wearing the same uniform and body armor, they passed their final test to officially become Ukrainian marines – an obstacle course.
Running through puddles and mud, climbing under barbed wire and through simulated anti-tank trenches, they shouted “Glory to Ukraine!” and “I love the Marines!” Commanders barked orders and made them drop to push-ups.
When they were done, they piled into pickup trucks and headed back to the front to rejoin Ukraine’s counteroffensive in southern Ukraine.
The Ukrainian military, struggling to replenish its ranks in the midst of a war, trains soldiers and puts them through qualification tests even after they are deployed to the front. A case in point was the navy on a recent warm summer afternoon: built just a few miles from the actual fighting, including the same trenches, bunkers and barbed wire used in the war against Russia.
Candidates from the 36th Marine Brigade were diverted from the front line to run the course. To participate, candidates need at least three months of combat experience. Many of the first batch of 40 guns saw more than that.
“I have already been fighting for eight months and always in the hardest parts of the front,” said Lt. Arseny, who, like others interviewed for this article, asked to be identified only by his first name and rank for security reasons. Although an artillery commander, he was not yet qualified to wear the Marine beret.
Muddy and tired, the men were in good spirits, greeting each other before running the course.
“A day has come to show that you are a true Marine,” Major Nazari Tofan, who was helping lead the training, told the candidates. “You should remember this race for the rest of your life.”
As Ukraine battles hundreds of miles of front lines in a 17-month-old war and shows no sign of easing, it must replace fallen soldiers and continue training those deployed without completing formal training. The 36th Marine Brigade fought in the southern city of Mariupol after Russia launched its full-scale offensive last winter, holding for weeks a steel factory that was relentlessly pounded by Moscow’s forces.
Many were killed or wounded, and more than a thousand were captured. The former commander of the brigade is still a prisoner of war in Russia.
Only 200 Marines escaped encirclement. Survivors were redeployed and new troops were called up to fight in the southern Kherson region. The 36th is now the typical size of a brigade, about 4,000 Marines.
The obstacle course is designed to simulate real combat conditions as closely as possible. Smoke grenades and firecrackers were set off. There was an ambush. Fellow Marines fired blanks and shouted at the candidates.
Private Serhi, 54, began to fall behind. A doctor came to check him, they found high blood pressure and gave him an injection. He did not pass the course.
“This war is no longer for me,” he said.
“It’s not for any of us in Ukraine,” replied the doctor.
Other candidates fought back by burning mud and tires. At the end of the course, 39 out of 40 had qualified.
After the other groups completed the challenge, a ceremony was held where the newly minted Marines took their oath – to be brave and not leave their brothers in arms behind – and received their berets. Then he returned to the front.
