Work to create Marine Corps will begin even before war ends – Ukrainian Navy commander

According to Ukrinform, Ukrainian Navy Commander, Vice Admiral Oleksiy Neizhpapa, said this on national television, commenting on the creation of the Marine Corps.

"As far as the creation of this corps is concerned, it is a requirement of today. Why? Because Ukraine is a maritime state and has a very large coastline - more than 2,700 km. If we take the maritime border, it is about 1,700 km, and all this is our coast, including that of the Sea of Azov, the Black Sea. There are many rivers, many estuaries, bays, ports, and ensuring security or liberating these territories is the task of the marines. Today's requirements dictate that we must form a powerful body that must have a full-fledged management system, a full set of weapons and naval equipment, units suitable for performing these tasks both independently and with other types of defense," Neizhpapa said.

When asked whether the creation of the corps means preparation for a major operation, the commander noted that all operations are carried out in conjunction with various units of the Ukrainian defense forces.

"The main tasks of the marines include the protection of naval bases, ports and, first of all, the capture of a bridgehead held by the enemy. As they say, this is a first-wave landing unit. They must be trained and have appropriate military equipment. But in order for them to do it, a powerful naval amphibious operation must be carried out," the commander said.

According to him, this is the most difficult operation at sea, because in order to even reach the shore, the Navy needs to complete many tasks, including mine clearance tasks, the tasks of strike forces of coastal missile troops, aircraft, search and rescue operations, etc.

The Marine Corps must be self-sufficient and must have the technical capabilities to seize the coast, capture the bridgehead and advance deep into the captured territory.

For the full functioning of the corps, it is also necessary to have amphibious ships, anti-mine ships, attack drones, etc., the commander noted.

Neizhpapa added that the creation of the Marine Corps would begin even before Ukraine's victory in the war.

"These are the plans for now. We don't have much time to wait for the end of the war," the commander said.

On May 23, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the creation of a Marine Corps in Ukraine.