The 225th Regiment Responded to Allegations of Mistreatment of Soldiers
The 225th Separate Assault Regiment found itself at the center of a high-profile scandal following the publication of an investigative report by journalist Anna Kalyuzhna, in which members of the unit are accused of threatening to shoot, opening fire on fellow soldiers, illegally detaining service members, and committing acts of cruelty.
According to soldiers who spoke with the journalist, the 225th Separate Assault Regiment’s bases in the Sumy and Zaporizhzhia regions allegedly had so-called “pits”—enclosed rooms where soldiers were held who, according to the command, had violated discipline.
The investigation also alleges that cruel punishments were meted out to certain soldiers, including a practice known as the “tree of truth.” According to the journalist’s sources, servicemen were tied to a tree and beaten with plastic pipes or sticks, and in some cases, this allegedly led to serious consequences.
In addition, the author of the report states that during SBU counterintelligence inspections, the beaten soldiers who were being held in such locations were transported out of the bases.
The investigation also mentions the alleged creation of “blocking detachments.” One of the witnesses claims that after losing his comrades, a wounded soldier refused to advance, after which, according to him, an order was given to drop ammunition on him from a drone.
The journalist also released an audio recording in which a voice resembling that of Oleg Shiryaev, commander of the 225th Separate Assault Regiment, allegedly orders to open fire on soldiers leaving their positions without permission.
Oleg Shiryaev, commander of the 225th Separate Assault Regiment, rejected accusations that he had created “blocking detachments.”
According to him, the audio recording concerned the rules for identifying soldiers during combat operations in the Kursk sector, when there was a threat of Russian sabotage groups infiltrating the area disguised as Ukrainian soldiers.
Shiryayev also stated that the recording had been taken out of context and attributed its dissemination to a leak from a closed chat group for commanders. At the same time, the journalist notes that she did not receive the recording from the soldier whom the commander named as a possible source.
The regiment commander denied the existence of “pits,” but confirmed that the incident involving a soldier being tied to a tree and beaten did indeed take place.
“This situation, involving a serious violation of military discipline, did indeed occur. And we are aware of it. We have already conducted an internal investigation into this incident, and the soldiers involved in this violation have been suspended and referred to the Military Prosecutor’s Office for further determination of their fate and the severity of their violations,” Shiryayev stated.
According to the Office of the Military Ombudsman, the 225th Separate Assault Regiment ranks second in terms of the number of complaints filed by service members. According to this data, the 425th Separate Assault Regiment “Skelya” ranks first.
The unit itself was formed from a company of a separate battalion of the 127th Territorial Defense Brigade. It took part in battles near Bakhmut, Avdiivka, and Chasiv Yar, in the Kursk Offensive, and in offensive operations in the Belgorod region, and is currently carrying out combat missions in the Zaporizhzhia sector near Huliaipole.
This is detailed in an investigation, the text version of which was published by Texty.
Earlier, officials from the State Bureau of Investigations (DBR) announced that they had served notices of suspicion to two servicemen from the medical company of the “Skelya” regiment, who are suspected of beating and unlawfully detaining two fellow soldiers in the Kirovohrad region. This was reported on July 28 by the SBI’s press service.
The command of the 425th Separate Assault Regiment “Skelya” stated that it is cooperating with the State Bureau of Investigations and supports the investigation into possible violations. The unit noted that it does not deny the existence of certain problems and is committed to addressing these issues.
