Roman Mishchenko, a participant in the regional “Young Person of the Year – 2026” competition in the “Heart of Victory” category
33-year-old Captain Roman Mishchenko commands a special-purpose company of the Airborne Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
A native of the village of Yevhenivka in Donetsk Oblast, Roman received a railway engineering degree and worked as a section foreman at the Illich Iron and Steel Works in Mariupol. After the full-scale invasion began, he evacuated his family to a safe place, volunteered for some time, and in April 2023, he voluntarily enlisted.
He began his military service as the commander of a special operations group. His unit took part in battles near Tokmak and in the Ocheretine area. For his effective actions, Roman received the “For the Defense of Ukraine” award. In July 2023, he was appointed deputy commander, and after training at the Odesa Military Academy in the spring of 2024, he became a company commander.
This was followed by 15 months of defense on the Kharkiv front, where his unit held all designated lines. In the fall of 2024, for the successful execution of combat missions, the officer was awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, 3rd Class, and the “Firearms” medal.
Since September 2025, Mishchenko’s company has been carrying out missions in the Donetsk region. In particular, the unit took part in the Dobropillia counteroffensive, where the commander was awarded the brigade-level “Ruthless” distinction. Currently, special forces under his command are conducting strike-search and assault operations in the Pokrovsk sector.