Colonel Oleksandr Okhrimenko became the new commander of the 72nd separate mechanized brigade (SMB) that defended Vuhledar.
This was reported on the 72 SMB account.
"Next, the Black Zaporozhians will be led into battle by Colonel Oleksandr Okhrimenko. There are new goals, tasks, purpose and acquisition of capabilities. It will not be easy for the enemy," the message reads.
Okhrimenko replaced Ivan Vinnik in this position. In the Operational Command "North" his dismissal was explained by appointment to a higher position. At the same time, the MP Mariana Bezuhla claimed that Vinnik was fired due to a disruption in the rotation of the brigade from Vuhledar.
What is known about Oleksandr Okhrimenko
Okhrimenko was born on October 19, 1984 in the Vinnytsia region. In 2006, he graduated with honors from the Odesa Institute of Ground Forces, and also graduated from the National Defense University of Ukraine named after I. Chernyakhovskyi. He is married, and raising 2 children — a daughter and a son.
He participates in battles with Russian troops since 2014. He was awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky III degree, a personal firearm and a number of awards of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
In October 2021, with the rank of lieutenant colonel, Okhrimenko headed the 14th separate mechanized brigade named after Prince Roman the Great.
With the beginning of the full-scale invasion under the command of Okhrimenko, the brigade fought in Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv regions and Donbas, and also liberated a significant part of the Kharkiv region from the Russians.
On July 4, 2023, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi appointed Colonel Oleksandr Okhrimenko as the new head of the Odesa Regional Territorial Recruit Center (TRC). He replaced Yevhen Borysov (the scandalous Odesa military commissar) in this position. Borysov was released following information that his family had purchased an expensive property in Marbella (Spain) after the beginning of a full-scale invasion.
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