"This day six years ago, the hearts of two newest Heroes of Ukraine, the alumni of the National Army Academy, Senior Lieutenant Serhii Svyshch and Lieutenant Serhii Buzeinikov stopped beating.

Serhii Svyshch graduated from the Academy in 2012 in the field of specialization "Command and Control by Actions of Reconnaissance and Special Forces Units". After that he served at officer positions in the 54th separate reconnaissance battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Since the beginning the Russian armed aggression, a unit where Serhii Svyshch served was the one of the first that was directed to the combat action area.

At the end of January 2015, the officer and his subordinates arrived to replace the personnel at the check point on the front line near the village of Sanzharivka, not far from Debaltseve. On January 25, in order to prevent the enemy from breaking into the rear of our defence, the reconnaissance men under the command of a young officer engaged the superior forces of the occupants. In this battle, the Ukrainian military managed to destroy several tanks and a large number of occupants. In this fierce battle, the Ukrainian soldiers seized the hill but the young commander, Senior Lieutenant Serhii Svyshch died heroically holding back the invaders.

By a Decree of the President of Ukraine no.132/2016, dated by April 8, 2016, Senior Lieutenant Serhii Serhiiovych Svishch was posthumously awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky 3rd degree,” the statement reads.

According to established tradition, the staff of the National Army Academy named after Hetman Petro Sahaidachnii honoured the sworn brothers by having lighted candles and having laid flowers near the memorial, dedicated to the fallen alumni of the educational institution. Together with the military chaplain, attendees prayed for the rest of their souls. At the same time, the whole staff of the Academy paid the tribute to the bright memory of the defenders with minute of silence.