Junior Sergeant Andriy Kukhta, a native of Verbove village in the Belz community, first joined Ukraine’s defense forces in 2018 at the young age of 18. At that time, he served with the 80th Separate Air Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces.
On February 24, 2022, as the full-scale war began, Andriy did not wait for a draft notice. He voluntarily returned to military service, this time joining the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo. Currently, he is holding back enemy forces near Chasiv Yar, performing combat missions on the front lines.
For his courage and dedication, Andriy Kukhta has been awarded the “Iron Cross” medal by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. This marks his third official recognition, as he had previously received the badges “Cross of the Brave” and “For the Defense of Bakhmut” from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.