Roman Kostenko (Photo: Screenshot of video Roman Kostenko / Facebook)
Roman Kostenko, the head of the Committee on National Security and Defense of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, announced that he took part in hostilities on the territory of Russia. In a video message published on social networks, Kostenko informed his colleagues that he will temporarily be unable to participate in the voting due to a “business trip”, which, according to him, consists of performing military tasks in the territory of a neighboring country.
The published footage shows Kostenko crossing the border with Russia in the Kursk region, together with the Ukrainian defense forces. Addressing the speaker of the parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, he said: “Ruslan Oleksiyovych, I am now in front of the Russian Federation. Sorry for the lack of permission, but I will still go there with our defense forces, and then I will write an application for a business trip”, he said, the New Voice of Ukraine reports.
Roman Kostenko, a 40-year-old military man with extensive experience, previously served as a platoon commander in the 79th Airborne Forces Brigade, and later in the Alfa special unit of the SBU. He became famous during the battles for the Donetsk airport, where Ukrainian soldiers, known as “cyborgs”, put up a heroic resistance to pro-Russian forces in 2014-2015.
In 2019, Kostenko left the service and was elected to the Verkhovna Rada from the pro-European “Voice” party. However, after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, he once again returned to the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
This event caused a wide resonance both among the Ukrainian public and in the international arena, emphasizing the readiness of Ukrainian politicians to actively participate in the defense of their country even on enemy territory.
