Oleksandr Fatsievych will temporarily take charge of the patrol police following the events in Kyiv
Oleksandr Fatsievych, Deputy Head of the National Police of Ukraine, will temporarily head the Patrol Police Department. This was announced by Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko during a meeting with media representatives.
According to him, Fatsievych has been entrusted with the duties of department head, with a focus on strengthening police training and modernising approaches to service. “We need to strengthen training and bring it up to date. Whatever you call it – we need to ensure that such shameful situations never happen again,” said Klymenko.
The minister announced that patrol officers will undergo training at training grounds on a rotational basis. The plan is to involve military personnel with combat experience from the 1st and 2nd Army Corps of the National Guard, as well as representatives of the State Border Guard Service, in the training.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs also plans to involve demobilised military personnel in police training. According to Klymenko, the aim is to intensify training and develop psychological resilience. “Psychological resilience in an extreme situation is not determined by a test, but by the individual’s experience at the training ground alongside an instructor,” he noted.
The Minister recalled that, on the instructions of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, response protocols and training programmes are to be reviewed. Particular attention will be paid to tactics involving the use of weapons and responding to potential threats.
“Every day, when responding to a simulated hooligan incident, a patrol must be prepared for the possibility that at least a grenade could be thrown at them,” said Klymenko.
He also emphasised that a police officer must be prepared to act in dangerous situations and not be afraid of taking risks. “A police officer is a police officer precisely to take risks for the sake of other people’s lives,” added the minister.
According to Klymenko, most of the personnel have already served in combined units in frontline areas. He noted that the possibility of deploying police officers to cities such as Kramatorsk, Pavlohrad or Synelnykove is being considered.
The personnel decisions followed a shooting on 18 April in the Holosiivskyi district of Kyiv. On that occasion, an armed man opened fire on people, subsequently took hostages in a shop and fired at police officers during his arrest. He was shot dead following negotiations.
Initial reports indicated six dead and 14 wounded. On 20 April, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced that the death toll had risen to seven following the death of one of the wounded in hospital.
Following the incident, two officers from the Kyiv Patrol Police Department were charged with dereliction of duty during the terrorist attack. The head of the Patrol Police Department, Yevhen Zhukov, submitted his resignation.
ThePublic analysed how the patrol police force has developed and why the reform, which began with a high level of public trust, has found itself at the centre of the biggest scandal in its entire history.
