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Ukrainian military considering creation of new cyber army branch

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Ukrainian military considering creation of new cyber army branch
Photo for illustrative purpose. A recruit of the 1st Separate Mechanized Battalion ‘Da Vinci Wolves’ trains and learns to work with FPV strike drones in central Ukraine on March 12, 2024. (Valentyna Polishchuk/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)

Ukrainian military, lawmakers, and experts discussed the creation of a separate branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces dedicated to cyberspace operations, the General Staff said on Oct. 24.

"The creation of Cyber Forces as a separate branch will significantly enhance the capabilities of the Ukrainian army, ensure effective planning and implementation of the full range of tasks in cyberspace, which, along with land, sea, air and space, is recognized as a separate operational domain," the statement read.

The participants of the meeting reviewed the main provisions of a draft concept of the branch, and defined the main functions and tasks of any future cyber army.

They also examined the experience of Western cyber forces, and analyzed the relevant experience of the Ukrainian army during Russia's all-out war.

At the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, Ukraine launched an IT army, which was joined by thousands of specialists in the first days of February 2022.

It has reportedly carried out multiple cyberattack on Russian online websites.Russian hackers have also regularly targeted various Ukrainian government institutions as well as businesses with crippling cyberattacks aimed at disrupting numerous industries and government services.

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Kateryna Denisova

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Kateryna Denisova is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent, covering Ukrainian domestic politics and social issues. She joined the newsroom in 2024 as a news editor following four years at the NV media outlet. Kateryna holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv. She was also a fellow at journalism schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.

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