Main Directorate of Intelligence (Ukraine)

The Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine conducts its activity in the military, political, technical, economic, signals, informational and environmental spheres.

The major missions:

• Obtaining, analyzing and dissemination of the intelligence information to the senior civil and military authorities of Ukraine.
• Performing special tasks in order to promote the National interests and State policy of Ukraine in economic, political, military, technical, environmental and informational areas, contributing to the national defence, fostering the economic development, promoting science and technology, and protecting the State border.
• Participating in operations against terrorism, international organised crime, drug, arms and technologies trafficking, and illegal migration.
• Counteracting the external threats that can affect the National security of Ukraine, lives and health of its citizens and the state facilities abroad.

The HUR MOU Buildings in Kyiv

The agency was established from the existing intelligence assets of the Kyiv, Odesa and Carpathian military districts[1] of the Soviet Armed Forces and its Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the independence of Ukraine.

The Intelligence Directorate of the General Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was established in February 1992. Based on a presidential decree issued on September 7, 1992, the Strategic Military Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence was created. The existence of two separate agencies with similar responsibilities, and reporting to different authorities, hampered the development of an effective military intelligence system.[1][2]

On July 6, 1993, the Decree of the President of Ukraine ordered the merging of the two agencies to form the Main Military Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence. It was renamed the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, or Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) for short, on April 4, 1994.[2][1]

In 2016 President Petro Poroshenko changed the GUR emblem. It was now an owl holding a sword directed against Russia with the new motto "The wise will rule over the stars". Moscow was outraged by the new emblem.[3]

On March 22, 2001, the Ukrainian parliament (Rada) ratified the Law of Ukraine "On Intelligence Agencies of Ukraine". The HUR MOU was given the status of special government authority.[1]

On August 18, 2021. HUR special forces moved on Il-76MDs from the 25th Transport Aviation Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Force and flew to Kabul with the mission of evacuating citizens of Ukraine and foreigners during the 2021 Kabul airlift. In total, the aircraft of the brigade made six flights and transported more than 700 citizens of different countries. Special forces went to Kabul three times a day to find and bring citizens who were to be evacuated to the Kabul airport.[4]

The HUR has an executive office and several agency-wide functions, and five major directorates and departments consisting of the following:

Directorates:

• Strategic Intelligence Directorate
• Armed Forces General Staff Intelligence Support Directorate
• Information Support Directorate
• Personnel Policy Directorate
• Logistic Directorate

Departments:

• Internal Security Department
• Planning Department
• Automation and Communication Department
• Economic and Finance Department
• Information and state secret protection Department

HUR special forces unit in Kabul during the 2021 Kabul airlift

Formations of the CDI-MDU

The only field reconnaissance unit of the CDI is a special unit subordinated to the Directorate's 4th Special Intelligence Service (4-та Служба спеціальної розвідки):

• 10th Separate Special Purpose Unit (10-й окремий загін спеціального призначення, Military Unit А2245), based in Rybalskyi Peninsula, Kyiv
  • 3 operational companies – 1st – 3rd Special Purpose Company (1 – 3 сотня спеціального призначення)

HUR special forces with a Kozak APC during the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Formations reporting to the CDI but are operationally part of the Armed Forces and the National Guard include:

HUR MOU is legally allowed to operate based upon the following laws:[6]

• The Constitution of Ukraine
• Verkhovna Rada Regulation "On National Security Concept of Ukraine (state policy fundamentals)", 1997
• The Law of Ukraine "On Defence of Ukraine", 2000
• The Law of Ukraine "On The Armed Forces of Ukraine", 2000
• The Law of Ukraine "On the Intelligence agencies of Ukraine", 2001
• The Law of Ukraine "Separate legislative acts of Ukraine Amendments in light of the Law of Ukraine", "About the Intelligence agencies of Ukraine" passage
• Presidential Decree "On the Ministry of Defence and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Status"

• Lieutenant General Oleksandr Skipalskyi (October 16, 1992 – June 9, 1997)

Born in Volyn Oblast 1945. Graduated from the KGB Higher School in 1975.

• Colonel General Ihor Smeshko (June 9, 1997 – September 29, 2000)

Born in Cherkasy Oblast 1955. Graduated from PhD from the National Academy of Defence in 2000.

• Colonel General Viktor Paliy (September 29, 2000 – March 13, 2003)

Born in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast 1949. Graduated from the Military Academy of General Staff of USSR Armed Forces in 1988.

• Colonel (ret.) Oleksandr Halaka (March 13, 2003 – January 17, 2008)

Born in Kharkiv 1955. Graduated from the Military Academy of Ground Forces Air-Defence in 1987 and the Kyiv University in 2000.

• Lieutenant General Viktor Hvozd (January 17, 2008 – August 17, 2010)

Born in Ternopil Oblast 1959. Graduated from the Frunze Military College (Kyiv, 1981), Lviv University (1997), Magistrate of Kyiv University of Law and Economics (2005), Military-Diplomatic Academy (2009).

• Major General Serhiy Hmyza (August 17, 2010 – February 26, 2014)

Born in Odesa Oblast 1960. Graduated Military College in 1981, the Military-Diplomatic Academy in 1991, Ukrainian State University in 2008.

• Major General Yuriy Pavlov (since March 3, 2014 – July 28, 2015)

Born in Lviv Oblast 1962.

• Lieutenant General Valeriy Kondratyuk (July 28, 2015 – October 15, 2016[7])
• Major General Vasyl Burba (since October 15, 2016[8] – August 5, 2020)
• Major General Kyrylo Budanov (since August 5, 2020)

• Maksym Shapoval †

• Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine
• Security Service of Ukraine

• Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, gov.ua