28th Regiment of State Facilities Protection
A Ukrainian National Guard regiment responsible for protecting the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and other sensitive state facilities, including during the 2022 Russian capture of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The 28th Regiment of State Facilities Protection is a Ukrainian military formation associated with the protection of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and other sensitive state assets. The subject identified in the supplied brief as the 1st Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion is the regiment's nuclear-facility protection formation, whose operational history is rooted in the specialized security units created around the Chernobyl plant during the Soviet period. The unit's institutional origins date to 1980, when a specialized commandant's office was created to guard the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant within the Internal Troops system of Ukraine. It entered service in 1981 and became a separate unit on 19 January 1982. Its headquarters moved to Pripyat on 22 September 1982. The formation's responsibilities included guarding the nuclear facility, chipboard and special cargoes, and maintaining security around strategic infrastructure. The Chernobyl disaster on 26 April 1986 was the defining event in the unit's early history. The specialized commandant's office was the first military formation to respond at the site. Following the accident, the unit was deployed in 1987 to support security in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, where it carried out protection duties until April 1990. On 27 June 1990, its headquarters was transferred to Slavutych, the purpose-built city that became the principal Ukrainian administrative and logistical center for personnel connected with the Chernobyl site. In 1991, the formation became part of the Internal Troops of independent Ukraine. Its continuing mission included defense of the Chernobyl plant, establishment and maintenance of barriers around the facility, and prevention of theft involving nuclear fuel, equipment, and machinery. On 26 September 2014, responsibility for the unit was transferred to the newly reorganized National Guard of Ukraine. The unit's role is primarily protective and security-oriented rather than that of a conventional heavy combat formation, with particular relevance to nuclear, chemical, biological, and radiological security in the exclusion zone. The regiment gained international attention during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. On 24 February 2022, Russian forces advancing from Belarus entered the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and reached the nuclear plant. The plant was placed on heightened alert, while a large group of personnel remained in the zone, including nuclear workers, medical staff, firefighters, visitors, and 169 soldiers from the protection formation. Because the Ukrainian unit lacked heavy weapons and was confronted by Russian armored vehicles, it was surrounded and compelled to surrender after negotiations. All 169 soldiers were taken captive at the time; 70 were subsequently released according to the cited account. The episode became a prominent example of the security risks created when military operations occur around operating or decommissioned nuclear infrastructure. After Russian forces withdrew from the Chernobyl area, the formation resumed its protective duties. Its continuing significance derives from the combination of nuclear-site security, management of access to a radiologically contaminated zone, protection against theft or unauthorized intrusion, and support for national security at a site of exceptional historical and environmental importance. It is a military organization rather than a commercial brand, and no commercial products, consumer customers, or public financial disclosures are identified in the supplied reference material.
History
The regiment's nuclear-site protection lineage began in 1980 with the creation of a specialized commandant's office for the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant within the Internal Troops of Ukraine. The office entered service in 1981 and became a separate unit on 19 January 1982. Its headquarters moved to Pripyat on 22 September of that year. The formation was assigned to guard the nuclear plant and other sensitive materials, including chipboard and special cargoes. On 26 April 1986, when the Chernobyl disaster occurred, the specialized commandant's office was the first military unit to respond. The accident transformed the unit's responsibilities from ordinary facility protection into long-term security work associated with a contaminated and restricted territory. In 1987, the formation was deployed to protect the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and continued that mission until April 1990. The headquarters moved to Slavutych on 27 June 1990. In 1991, the unit became part of the Internal Troops of independent Ukraine and retained responsibility for defending the Chernobyl plant. Its duties included constructing and enforcing barriers around the facility and preventing the theft of nuclear fuel, machinery, and other equipment. The unit later became part of the National Guard of Ukraine on 26 September 2014, as Ukraine reorganized its internal security and military structures. The formation's most consequential combat episode occurred during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. On 24 February 2022, Russian forces that had entered from Belarus advanced through the exclusion zone and reached the Chernobyl plant. A scheduled worker shift change was cancelled, and the facility was placed on heightened alert. Approximately 300 people were in the exclusion zone, including technical personnel, medical workers, firefighters, visitors, and 169 soldiers of the protection formation. The Ukrainian soldiers were not equipped with heavy weapons suitable for stopping Russian armored vehicles. After Russian forces surrounded the site, two Tigr armored vehicles associated with Russian special operations forces entered the nuclear plant grounds and issued an ultimatum. The unit's commanders negotiated a surrender, and all 169 soldiers were taken captive. Seventy were subsequently released according to the cited account. The capture demonstrated the vulnerability of lightly equipped nuclear-facility security forces when a strategic site becomes part of a conventional military advance. The unit resumed its duties after Russian forces withdrew from Chernobyl. Its continuing role combines protection of nuclear infrastructure, control of access to a radiologically restricted area, prevention of theft and unauthorized activity, and support for public safety. The available reference identifies the formation's commander as Lieutenant Colonel Zhar Yevhen Kostyantynovich, but does not provide a documented tenure period.
- 2022
Capture during the battle for Chernobyl
[1]Russian forces captured the Chernobyl site during the invasion of Ukraine, taking 169 soldiers of the protection formation captive.
- 2014
Transferred to the National Guard of Ukraine
[1]Responsibility for the unit was transferred to the National Guard on 26 September.
- 1991
Formation incorporated into independent Ukraine's Internal Troops
[1]The unit became part of the Internal Troops of Ukraine and continued guarding the Chernobyl plant and its perimeter.
- 1990
Headquarters transferred to Slavutych
[1]The formation's headquarters moved from the Chernobyl area to Slavutych on 27 June.
- 1987
Exclusion Zone protection mission begins
[1]The unit was deployed to protect the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and continued the assignment until April 1990.
- 1986
Response to the Chernobyl disaster
[1]The specialized commandant's office was the first military unit to respond on the day of the Chernobyl disaster.
- 1982
Unit becomes separate formation and moves to Pripyat
[1]The office became a separate unit on 19 January, and its headquarters moved to Pripyat on 22 September.
- 1981
Protection office enters service
[1]The newly created formation began formal service in the nuclear plant protection role.
- 1980
Specialized Chernobyl protection office created
[1]A specialized commandant's office was established within Ukraine's Internal Troops to protect the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
Products and positioning
Specialized Ukrainian military protection of nuclear infrastructure, sensitive state facilities, and the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
Brand decisions
2022
Negotiated surrender during the capture of ChernobylOtherBackground
On 24 February 2022, Russian forces entered the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and surrounded the protection formation at the nuclear plant. The Ukrainian unit lacked heavy weapons capable of effectively engaging the advancing armored vehicles.
Action taken
Unit commanders negotiated with the Russian forces and surrendered the 169 soldiers stationed at the site.
Aftermath
Seventy soldiers were later released, and the formation resumed its protective duties after Russian forces withdrew from the area.
Sources1 sources
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