1st Tank Brigade (Ukraine)
The 1st Severia Tank Brigade () is an armored formation of the Ukrainian Ground Forces. The Brigade is located in Honcharivske. History. The brigade was formed from the 292nd Guards Armored Novohrad Orders of the Red Banner, Kutuzov, Bogdan Khmelnitsky, Alexander Nevsky and Red Star Regiment of the 72nd Mechanized Division and 280th Armored Regiment of the 25th Mechanized Division. Following the Soviet Union's dissolution, the unit fell under Ukraine's banner. Ukraine's army reconstituted the brigade in September 2014, following the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. In January 2015, elements of the  brigade were reported to of participated in the Second Battle of Donetsk Airport to attempt a breakthrough. Then on 18 November 2015, the Soviet decorations included in the brigade's full name (1st Separate Guards Tank Novohrad Orders of the Red Banner, Kutuzov, Bogdan Khmelnitsky, Alexander Nevsky and Red Star Brigade, () were removed under Ukrainian decommunization law, leaving the name to be 1st Guards Tank Brigade (). Furthermore, on 22 August 2016, its Guards title was also removed. It was granted the Siverska honorific on 24 August 2017. As of April 2021, the brigade was seen fighting in Donbas until Russia  began massing troops along Ukraine's border, moving back to its original garrison outside of Kyiv. At the onset of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the brigade's elements dispersed in anticipation of the imminent barrage of artillery, rockets, and airstrikes in the opening hours. The unit was later sent to Chernihiv to respond to Russian vanguard forces from the 41st Combined Arms Army. Russian forces made attempts to take the city on the road to Kyiv but were repelled; they eventually bypassed the city. The brigade, augmented by Territorial Defense Forces and reserves, remained in Chernihiv while Russian  reinforcements began to encircle the city as a result of more failed assault. This resulted in the Siege of Chernihiv. By 31 March 2022, the brigade had successfully defended the city against Russian attacks and the siege was lifted. Surviving elements of the Russian 41st CAA retreated north to Belarus. The brigade recaptured surrounding Ukrainian towns and the M01 Highway connecting to Kyiv. Current structure. As of 2017 the brigade's structure is as follows: