Operational Command North is a command of the Ukrainian Ground Forces in northern Ukraine. It was formed in 2013 from the Western Operational Command and Territorial Directorate North by reforming the 13th Army Corps. The operation command traces its history back to Territorial Directorate "North", which was created on the basis of Northern Territorial Operational Command by Directive №322/1/010 of the Minister of Defence of Ukraine on 20 May 2005. The previous Northern Operational Command was created in 1996 and based on the 1st Army Corps that continued the traditions of the 1st Guard Red-Banner Army. It encompassed six oblasts: Poltava, Sumy, Kiev, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv, and Cherkasy. The command consisted of units and military formations of the 8th Army Corps. On 15 August 2005, temporary Chief of the Directorate Colonel Yuriy Horoliuk signed the first Order within the Directive. This day is considered the creation date for the Directorate. The Territorial Directorate "North" was the first to switch to a new system of control.
History
When Ukraine gained independence, the 1st Guards Army was stationed on Ukrainian territory with its headquarters at Chernihiv. During the early 1990s, the army was reformed into the 1st Army Corps. In 1996, the Northern Operational and Territorial Command was formed from the corps. At the beginning of 1998, the command was split into the Northern Operational Command, managing operations in the area. The Northern Territorial Command controlled other functions. In August 2005, Territorial Directorate "North" was established from the Northern Operational Command.
The Directorate was responsible for territory spanning over, in which 15,000,000 people lived in 2008. The oblasts of Kharkiv, Poltava, Sumy, Kiev, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv, and Cherkasy were all are under the Directorate control. The Directorate was in charge of the 7 oblasts and Kiev City Military Commissariat, 135 regional military commissariats, 530 military units and bases. As of 2008, the mission of the directorate was to organize territorial defence, recruit conscripts and contract soldiers and manage infrastructure. In November 2013, the directorate was reformed into Operational Command North. The command absorbed units of the disbanded 13th Army Corps.
Current Structure
Operational Command North has operational command of ground force units in Poltava, Sumy, Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv, and Cherkasy oblasts, as well as in the city of Kyiv.
