On November 18, Ukraine celebrates another professional holiday of the military – Sergeant Day of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Sergeants are called the backbone of the army. Their functions in the modern Ukrainian army are extremely important.
What is known about the role of sergeants in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and at the front is further in the material.
The backbone of the army: what is known about the Code, the slogan and motto of the sergeants
Sergeant is a junior command rank in the armies of many countries.
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Sergeants are considered the “backbone” of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This is exactly the definition given by the Ministry of Defense.
– Our sergeants and foremen are the power, strength, backbone of the Ukrainian army! They make smart decisions in difficult combat situations. They lead soldiers into battle. They are responsible for the personnel,” the department noted.
Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The slogan of the sergeant corps of the Ukrainian Armed Forces sounds like this: Follow me, do as I do!
And the motto of a sergeant of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is honor, devotion, responsibility, professionalism.
The Sergeant Code has been approved in Ukraine. This is a solemn oath taken at the ceremony for attaining the rank of first sergeant. It is read out either by the serviceman himself or by the chief sergeant major, and the sergeant repeats it.
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The Code states that a sergeant is a leader and mentor to subordinates, as well as an assistant and support to the commander.
He “behaves with honor under any conditions,” never gives up or retreats, and is devoted to military affairs, the Ukrainian people and the Motherland. The sergeant is responsible for the implementation of assigned tasks and for the military personnel who report to him.
Sergeant Day of the Ukrainian Armed Forces appeared in 2019 . It was established by presidential decree “with the aim of enhancing military traditions”, to honor the heroism of sergeants in the struggle for the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The role of sergeants in the army and at the front
The Ukrainian armed forces are moving further away from the model of the Soviet army, where all decisions are made only by senior officers, and are gradually being rebuilt according to NATO standards.
And the development of the sergeant corps is one of the key priorities for reforming the Armed Forces of Ukraine. After all, it is the sergeant who has a significant role on the battlefield.
He is not a silent executor of orders “from above,” but a leader, a commander, capable of quickly and independently making decisions. The sergeant leads the unit during battle, and the lives of soldiers depend on his decisions.
According to military expert Pyotr Chernik , this distribution of powers became one of our advantages during a full-scale war.
– We are moving to a system that allows us to effectively conduct combat operations, when everything is not centralized in one hand: the higher the boss, the greater the power. And when junior officers, sergeants have a certain freedom of will. This is one of the phenomena of our success, because we are more creative. We are not as caught up in the dogmas of military science as Russia is,” Chernik emphasized in a commentary to ICTV Facts.
He added that the transition to NATO standards is a “long path” that the Ukrainian Armed Forces need to go through.
As military expert Oleg Zhdanov explained to Facts ICTV, the sergeant is the key link between the officer who assigns the task and the soldiers who must carry it out.
The functions of an officer are to make strategic decisions and plan actions at the front. And the sergeant, as the officer’s right hand, is responsible for the quality of the assigned task and commands the unit on the battlefield.
– At best, an officer is alone in a platoon, like a platoon commander. And in a platoon there are at least three sections. And these squads are commanded by sergeants. During combat operations, personnel are also mainly commanded by sergeants. Officers implement the overall management system in the unit. The officer’s task is to correctly distribute tasks, set them correctly and then monitor how they are performed. And the direct organization of task execution is entrusted to the sergeants,” Zhdanov said.
In the new Ukrainian army, a sergeant must monitor discipline in his unit. In addition, he teaches soldiers the principle of “follow me, do as I do.”
– Our sergeant should become a father for every soldier. And this is the main point. He is not “the elder wherever they send him,” as he was before. Today he must train personnel in general military disciplines and the order of life in the ranks of the Armed Forces. This is the role of a sergeant,” noted Oleg Zhdanov.
According to the military expert, if we really build a sergeant vertical in the control system of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, “we will have an army, for example, like in Germany or the USA.” That is, “professional, trained and well managed,” as required by NATO standards.
The Law of Ukraine On the Charter of the Internal Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine states that the chief sergeant of a brigade, regiment, battalion in peacetime and war is responsible for providing the commander with information and proposals. He is the commander’s adviser “on all matters relating to privates and non-commissioned officers.”
The chief sergeant of a company or platoon is responsible for training soldiers, military discipline, organizing the proper storage and operation of weapons, and maintaining internal order in the unit. He reports to the commander and is the direct superior to private and non-commissioned personnel.
Sergeants and the transition to NATO standards
Since 2012, Ukraine has been participating in the NATO Defense Education Enhancement Program (DEEP).
Since 2015, a separate area of DEEP for Ukraine has been the reform of the sergeant training system.
During this time, more than 12 thousand Ukrainian military personnel and teachers underwent training and advanced training according to NATO standards (within the framework of DEEP). Military training continues at courses for commanders and non-commissioned instructors.
Sergeant training centers appeared in Ukraine, and leadership courses were introduced.
A reform also took place in the system of military ranks . A new scale of ranks for NCOs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was introduced, which meets NATO standards. It included: chief sergeant, staff sergeant, master sergeant, senior master sergeant, chief master sergeant.
The sergeant corps of Ukraine, in accordance with NATO standard STANAG 2116, is divided into: junior, senior and senior personnel.
In general, all military ranks in the Armed Forces of Ukraine were transferred to NATO military rank codes (according to the STANAG 2116 standard). This was another step towards interoperability with the armed forces of the bloc's members.
At the beginning of this year, the Verkhovna Rada introduced changes to the legislation allowing the appointment of sergeants without higher education, but with combat experience, to officer positions.
The Ministry of Defense also approved the concept for the development of the sergeant corps of the Armed Forces of Ukraine until 2035 . The document provides for six areas: improving the structure of positions and military ranks; empowerment; development of the training and military education system; improvement of the procedure for military service; raising social standards; creating a sense of professional unity.
Thus, the development of the Ukrainian army will continue. And sergeants, as the new generation of junior combat commanders, occupy a key place in it.
