| 126th Guards Coastal Defence Brigade | |
|---|---|
 Great emblem of the Brigade | |
| Active | December 1, 2014 – present |
| Country | Russia |
| Role | Coastal Troops |
| Size | ~2000 (2017)[1] |
| Part of | 22nd Army Corps,Black Sea Fleet |
| Garrison/HQ | Perevalne, Republic of Crimea[2] |
| Equipment | T-72 main battle tank |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Lieutenant Colonel Gasparyan Andranik Sarkisovich |
The126th Guards Coastal Defense Brigade is a formation of theCoastal Defence Troops of theRussian Navy. ItsMilitary Unit Number is 12676. The brigade is part of the22nd Army Corps, Coastal Forces of theRussian Black Sea Fleet.[3] The brigade's garrison is located inPerevalne, in theSimferopol region of theRussian-occupiedRepublic of Crimea.[2]
The 126th Brigade was formed on the basis of the36th Separate Coastal Defense Brigade of theUkrainian Navy, military unit A2320, which was formed from units of the32nd Army Corps in 2003. In early 2014, the brigade's barracks inCrimea were surrounded for several weeks bymasked Russian special forces soldiers during theannexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. On March 21, 2014, servicemen loyal to their oaths to Ukraine were allowed to leave Crimea for unoccupied Ukraine; the remainder were given the option of quitting or renouncing their oaths to Ukraine and swearing a new oath to the Russian Federation. According to Colonel S. I. Storozhenko, the brigade commander, 199 servicemen, of 1,200, left and 300 quit; the remainder swore allegiance to the Russian Federation.[4] Thereafter, it was reported that the brigade and its commander entered theArmed Forces of the Russian Federation as a separate coastal defense brigade of the Black Sea Fleet.[4] On December 1, 2014, the 126th Separate Coastal Defence Brigade was formed on the basis of this formation.[5] The number was chosen to commemorate the Soviet 126th Coastal Defense Division, which took part in theCrimean offensive duringWorld War II.[6]
On March 2, 2022, as part of theSouthern Ukraine offensive during the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, units of the brigade advanced fromMykolaiv towards the city ofVoznesensk, in an attempt to find a crossing over theSouthern Bug river. The column consisted of 400 men and 43 vehicles.[7][8] The unit failed to find a crossing due to preparations taken by the city's mayor and civilian population; there were numerous roadblocks, a bridge over theMertvovod River [uk] was destroyed, and the shoreline of the river had been dug out. So, Russian vehicles could not ford it.[8]
The defense of the city was mostly mustered by the Ukrainian80th Air Assault Brigade, local civilian militias,Territorial Defense Forces, and UkrainianSpecial Operations Forces. The Ukrainian paratroopers said that they rendered the 126th's artillery ineffective, and the 126th was forced to withdraw from the city after sustaining heavy losses. Ukrainian officers estimated that a total of 100 Russian soldiers died, 10 were captured, and 30 of the unit's 43 armoured vehicles were either destroyed or abandoned in one day; Ukrainian forces were able to salvage 15 of these into working order.[9][8]
On March 28, 2022, the brigade was awarded theGuards status.[10][11]
By 19 April 2022, the Ukrainians claimed that the brigade had suffered 75% casualties during the invasion so far.[12]
On October 15, 2022, theInstitute for the Study of War wrote in their daily "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment":[13]
"A video posted to social media on October 13 shows servicemen of the 126th Coastal Defence Brigade of the Black Sea Fleet in an unspecified location in Kherson Oblast complaining that they have been fighting in the area since the beginning of the war without breaks or troop rotation. The servicemen asserted that they are being "crushed" by Ukrainian forces and emphasized that they have one BTR (armored personnel carrier) for 80 people, which is greatly restricting their maneuverability. After the video circulated, a Wagner Group–affiliated Telegram channel announced on October 14 that Wagner Group leadership decided to transfer four off-road vehicles to the 126th Coastal Defence Battalion [sic: Brigade] in support of their efforts to hold the frontline in Kherson Oblast.
Since at least November 2022, the 126th brigade has been stationed onOstriv Velykyi Potomkin, the scene of continued skirmishes, as part of the2022–2023 Dnieper campaign. Since the liberation of Kherson, the island has been re-occupied several times.[14] It had initially been liberated by Ukrainian forces on December 7 but was re-occupied by Russian forces on December 9.[15][16][17][18] Ukrainian and Russian forces both maintain a presence on the island and have contested the island since January 2, 2023.[19][20] The 126th brigade claimed to have repelled an assault on March 7, while Ukrainian forces claimed to have killed 13 Russians and destroyed 6 armored vehicles and a tank during an air strike on 16 April.[21][22] On August 25, 2023, Ukraine attacked the brigade inPerevalne, Crimea.[23]