If you missed previous parts, you can find them here and here!

Yulia Mykytenko

Photo source: The Women Veterans Movement.

Yulia Mykytenko joined the military twice: first in 2016 and again after the full-scale invasion began. Before that, she was pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Language Studies at the Kyiv-based National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

Photo source: The Women Veterans Movement.

“I wanted to enlist back in 2014, but I decided to finish my education first. I met my husband, who had been fighting since 2014, and we joined a volunteer unit together after I graduated.”

Yulia’s journey in the military has been challenging. She was assigned to a combat position when the number of women in the Armed Forces was just around 20,000, with only a few thousand in combat roles. Yulia worked her way up from administrative positions to become the commander of a UAV reconnaissance platoon.

“As a commander, I have one obligation: to preserve the life and health of my team while accomplishing the assigned task. There are many problems and nuances that come with it.”

As a commander, Yulia faced difficulty being accepted by her subordinates in a leadership role. She admits that, at that time, she underestimated the risks the battalion leadership took by appointing a female to a leadership position, but now she understands it and is grateful for their support. Her peers and subordinates were initially surprised and disheartened, and many in the reconnaissance platoon opted to transfer to other units. In the end, she was left with only three team members, including herself, before heading into the combat zone.

“[It was] truly a tough period of service. My husband supported, inspired, and sometimes even protected me. He encouraged me and offered advice, as he had served in the reconnaissance battalion from 2014 to 2016 and was much more familiar with the specifics of reconnaissance work than I was. I studied at the Academy of Land Forces to become a motorised infantry platoon commander. The work of an infantry unit and reconnaissance is somewhat different.”

Photo source: The Women Veterans Movement.

From 2018 to 2021, Yulia served as a platoon commander at the Ivan Bohun Military School in Kyiv (one of Ukraine’s most prestigious military education facilities, providing a comprehensive education for future officers – ed.)

“My job was to educate young boys and girls, instilling in them a love for Ukraine and a sense of dignity and self-respect that should be inherent in the Ukrainian military. In 2021, I left the service and worked for six months as a project manager in various veterans’ rehabilitation programs, as I am a veteran myself. It was critically important for me to help my fellow soldiers to find their footing in civilian life after combat.”

Yulia felt compelled to return to the Armed Forces in 2022, driven by the desire to protect her home and to honour the memories of her husband and father, both of whom had made the ultimate sacrifice.

She also made a promise to herself she would rejoin the military in case of a full-scale invasion.

Photo source: The Women Veterans Movement.

Yulia first connected with the Women Veterans Movement in 2019 when Maria Berlinska invited her to participate in veteran diplomacy and travel abroad for an advocacy campaign focused on securing grants for veteran programs.

“There were women from the movement and co-founder Andriana [Susak-Arekhta]. They told me about the movement. I was excited. When I stepped into my role, I really needed mentorship or at least reassurance that there were other women like me fighting for their right to be recognised as full-fledged combat personnel – women I could talk to about my challenges.”

Yulia believes that without the movement, many women in combat roles would have been labelled as cooks or “bathhouse bosses” in their military IDs. This would deprive female service members and their families of the legal protections and benefits that come with being recognised as combat participants.

“The organisation is shifting the military towards a humanitarian approach, towards respect. Paraphrasing a well-known phrase by Mykola Khvyliovyi, I’d say, ‘Away with the Soviet mindset, we need a true Ukrainian army!’ It may sound lofty, but the women of the Women Veterans Movement have put in significant effort to ensure that women receive legal protections, have comfortable uniforms, and that their voices are heard when they report harassment by some Soviet-style colonel. Women should be respected and not seen as mere decorations in their units.”

Photo source: The Women Veterans Movement.

Yulia highlights the importance of mentorship for women entering the military.

“I was fortunate to lead the first platoon of girls at the Ivan Bohun Military School. The girls there need support from women who have served. The movement includes women with a wide range of military expertise, so if any of the girls need help, support, or just advice, they always have someone to turn to.”

_______________________________

Join us tomorrow for the final part of this series.

_______________________________

The 1022nd day of a ten-year invasion that has been going on for centuries.

One day closer to victory.

🇺🇦 HEROIAM SLAVA! 🇺🇦