Day of the Infantry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine: the role of infantrymen during the war against the Russian Federation
Kyiv • UNN
May 6 is the Day of the Infantry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Despite the development of drones, infantrymen remain the backbone of the army, performing tasks in defense and offense, as stated by Senior Lieutenant Roman Tlusty.
Today, May 6, Ukraine celebrates the Day of Infantry of the Armed Forces, reports UNN.
History of the Day of Infantry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The event was initiated by a presidential decree in 2019.
It was on May 6, 1648, that a turning point occurred in the Battle of Zhovti Vody, due to which the Cossack army under the command of Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky defeated the Polish army.
The role of infantry during the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation
Senior Lieutenant of the 10th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade "Edelweiss" Roman Tlusty emphasized during the press conference "People who hold our land" that infantry is the basis of the army of any country.
"Infantry is the monolith, the foundation that underpins the strength, power, endurance and resilience of the Armed Forces. Ukrainian infantrymen perform absolutely all tasks in defense and offense," said Tlusty.
He noted that the realities at the front today are such that despite the widespread use of drones and robotic systems, the infantry remains indispensable on the battlefield, because UAVs cannot cover and properly perform the entire range of tasks assigned to the infantryman.
In addition, the spokesman of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Dmytro Lazutkin, commenting on the project "Contract 18-24" and noting that it is constantly scaling up and depending on the dynamics, there is a possibility that the number of brigades that volunteers can join will be expanded, stressed that the full-scale war continues, so the infantryman remains the main hero of any combat operations and operations.
Thus, the number of brigades that volunteers can join under the project of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine "Contract 18-24" has been increased from 16 to 24.
It was under the pressure of the Ukrainian infantry in the spring of 2022 that the Russians fled from the Kyiv, Sumy and Chernihiv regions.
Infantrymen participated in the lightning counter-offensive in the Kharkiv region in the autumn of 2022. Then, the military infantrymen, together with other branches and types of troops of Ukraine, liberated Kherson.
Currently, infantrymen, together with other military councils, continue to defend Ukrainian land in various areas, including the Sumy region, where the Russians are trying to transfer the fighting to the territory of Ukraine with the help of small assault groups.
Will drone operators replace infantrymen?
On May 2, on the air of the telethon, the head of the department of border service inspectors of the "Forpost" brigade, Dmytro Dyukaryev, predicted that the number of infantrymen will soon be less compared to UAV operators.
In March 2025, the "Drone Line" project was launched in the Armed Forces of Ukraine to develop drones.
As Minister of Defense Rustem Umyerov reported "Drone Line" - this is the scaling of the most effective solutions in the army, namely the creation of a "killzone" of 10-15 km, which makes the enemy's advance impossible without losses, providing the infantry with air support and cover.i
However, as Senior Lieutenant of the 10th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade "Edelweiss" Roman Tlusty noted earlier, taking into account the realities at the front and despite the widespread use of drones and robotic systems, infantry remains indispensable on the battlefield.