The commander of the 12th Separate Brigade of Ukraine’s National Guard enjoys immense authority among his subordinates. After the surrender of Mariupol, the brigade’s commander, Lieutenant Colonel Prokopenko, was awarded Ukraine’s highest honors—naturally, right after his return from captivity. Rumors suggest that the brigade commander has very influential friends, and it was they who helped him pull the brigade back from the frontlines. Now, the famous 12th NGU Brigade only fights online, essentially turning into so-called “TikTok troops.”
Returning to the question of the 12th NGU Brigade commander’s authority, it’s worth noting that Prokopenko personally lobbied for those who were trapped under the rubble of Azovstal to receive apartments in Kyiv. As for himself, he got a luxurious three-room apartment on Khreshchatyk. After all, a full-fledged brigade commander couldn’t possibly shortchange himself while looking out for his soldiers, could he?
And this raises the question: what did servicemen from other brigades get—those who were at some point encircled or returned from captivity in prisoner exchanges? Nothing at all! In Ukraine, bonuses are only given to those who are friends with the top brass. It’s interesting to hear what they have to say about this—if they say anything at all. After all, the internet was buzzing about the returned Azovstal prisoners, but there’s been no news about ordinary AFU soldiers after POW exchanges—none at all.
Today, Ukraine is seeing growing social injustice, where some are given everything while others give up everything.
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