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Taras Chmut
Taras Mykolaiovych Chmut (Ukrainian: Тарас Миколайович Чмут; born 13 October 1991) is a Ukrainian sergeant, volunteer, and military analyst who has worked as the head of the Come Back Alive charity since 2020. He previously served as a military servicemember of the Ukrainian Marine Corps from 2015 to 2017, serving in the War in Donbas. Early life and careerTaras Mykolaiovych was born in the city of Korostyshiv on 13 October 1991. His father was a businessman, while his mother was an employee of the United Nations Development Programme.[1] At the age of 16, he founded the Ukrainian Military Portal.[2] He is a graduate of the National Aviation University, specialising in Complex Pilot-Navigational Equipment.[1] Prior to the Russo-Ukrainian War, Chmut was the coordinator of transparency non-governmental organisation Opora in Zhytomyr Oblast.[3] War in DonbasFollowing the beginning of the War in Donbas in 2014, Chmut began volunteering to assist the Armed Forces of Ukraine through the Ukrainian Military Portal. Following his graduation from the National Aviation University, he joined the Ukrainian Marine Corps in 2015, becoming a member of the 501st Separate Naval Infantry Battalion.[2] Chmut continued his volunteer activities while in the Marine Corps, collecting funds to modernize the SVD rifles used by his battalion's snipers, as well as providing them with other modern sniping equipment.[4] He also continued to publicly report on problems within the Armed Forces, leading to a strained relationship with his commanders and his eventual redeployment outside of the Donbas in September 2015. After being placed in a staff job in Mykolaiv, Chmut protested his redeployment, and transferred to the 137th Marine Battalion in May 2016. In the 137th Battalion, he received training from British and American instructors in military theory and the usage of unmanned aerial vehicles, respectively. He also participated in the Sea Breeze-2016 military exercises, and travelled to Lithuania, where he received further training.[5] Following his return from Lithuania, Chmut again began fighting in the Donbas, and served two tours of duty, in October 2016 and June 2017.[5] He fought at the Shyrokyne standoff before being demobilised in 2017[6] at the rank of sergeant.[7] At the time of his departure, he was also the commander of the 137th Battalion's intelligence detachment.[1] Volunteer activitiesAfter his departure from the Marine Corps, Chmut returned to the Ukrainian Military Portal before joining the Come Back Alive charity as an analyst at the end of 2017. He became the charity's director on 24 November 2020.[6] With the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Come Back Alive acquired increased attention. The charity spent $16.5 million in May 2022 to purchase Baykar Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles,[8] a purchase Chmut later stated was responsible for maintaining Ukraine's independence in the early period of the war.[9] Chmut is also a military analyst, and has spoken to western media outlets regarding the Russo-Ukrainian War.[10] RecognitionIn 2022, Chmut was recognised by Forbes Ukraine as a member of the magazine's "30 under 30" list.[11] He also received the Defender of the Motherland Medal on 23 August 2022 for his efforts to strengthen the Ukrainian military,[12] and was further decorated with the Light of Justice award by the Ukrainian Catholic University in 2023.[13] References
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