In the Czech city of Brno at the end of October 2023, a forum of Special Operations Forces was held, which was organized by the international organization Global SOF.

Global SOF is a non-profit organization that expands and maintains an international network for the development of special forces capabilities, develops partnerships to counter global and networked threats in the world.

The main topic of this year's forum is "The Role of Special Forces Units in the Conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian war".

Officers of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, who took part in the event, told their colleagues about the experience gained by our special forces units, in particular:

• about the missions in the Black Sea, the release of Zmiyinyi Island and the raids to the occupied Crimea;
• about landings on the occupied left bank of the Dnipro River;
• about the air "caravan" of helicopters to the surrounded Mariupol;
• about assault and defensive operations in the most difficult areas of the front;
• about the liberation of Kharkiv region and the battle for Kyiv.

The Battle for Kyiv in 2022 was the first combat mission for the DIU's Special Forces in the context of russia’s large-scale invasion.

“Using of special forces personnel as light infantry was not quite in line with our profile. But at the time, the stakes were too high. The loss of Kyiv would have led to a large-scale collapse of the front and total demotivation of the society and the army,” explained an officer of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, pseudonym Philosopher.

Representatives of Ukraine's military intelligence said that coordination of units formed from local residents also played an important role during the fighting against the russian invaders in the first months of the invasion, as they inflicted significant losses on the enemy in the deep rear.

The emphasis on in-depth work with local resistance centers in the occupied and moscow-controlled territories continues and is yielding significant results.

Commenting on the prospects of special assault units of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, our officers emphasized the importance of the development of the technological component – first of all, unmanned means of destruction.

During the Forum, Ukrainian speakers emphasized that as long as the aggression against our country continues, the Special Forces personnel of Shamanbat, Kraken, Artan, the International Legion and other units created during the war will continue to conduct and scale their daring missions aimed at bleeding out terrorist russia.

The answer to the question “What should be the end of the russian-Ukrainian war?” was unequivocal and rejecting any discussion on the topic – “Full return of Ukrainian territory along the 1991 border line”. At the end of the speech, the audience gave the Ukrainian intelligence officers a standing ovation.