He went to fight the enemy from the beginning of the major russian-Ukrainian war. He was sure: “Evil whose teeth are not knocked out can slit throat”

A year ago, on November 26, 2024, the heart of the defender of Ukraine Sviatoslav Naumychev stopped at a Kharkiv hospital – a resident of Energodar, a nuclear engineer who took up arms to resist the invasion of russian invaders in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Sviatoslav Naumychev, call sign “Sviat”, a reactor engineer of the Zaporizhzhia NPP Unit 5 in civilian life, and after the full-scale invasion – a brave military, senior sergeant, commander of the 110th brigade of the 113th separate battalion of the Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

He went to the front without any hesitation, as a volunteer, although as a nuclear employee he was in reserved occupation. He fought on the front line, in hot spots almost all the time. Over 33 hellish months, military service became for him a round-the-clock continuous job, which he always performed perfectly. He quickly mastered the control of drones, in particular Mavics and FPV drones, was engaged in reconnaissance and adjustment of artillery and mortar fire.

Above all, Sviat was committed to save as many Ukrainian military as possible, and to keep destroying the enemy. For this purpose, as an engineer, he even improved the design of drones to make them more effective.

On November 24, in the Lozova area, Sviatoslav was seriously injured as a result of a targeted hit by an enemy drone. For almost two days, at the Kharkiv medical center, doctors were fighting for his life. Unfortunately, on November 26, 2024, the defender’s heart stopped. A month before that, he turned 37.

The memory of him lives in the hearts of everyone who knew him. Sviatoslav is one of those people who leave a large footprint on the sands of time. He was an extraordinary, interesting person, loved to learn, absorbed knowledge, read many books. He had his own plans, dreams and hopes... Most of all, he was distinguished by clear life principles. A strong sense of justice, honesty and decency determined his worldview. He was selflessly defending the right of Ukrainians to live in a free country. He was and remains a model of courage, steadfastness, patriotism – for his brothers, friends, and colleagues. As well as for his girlfriend…

“Sviat is a real Military, a real Cossack, who was certainly destined for that! It seems as he was born for this purpose. It is not for nothing that he was named in honor of Sviatoslav the Brave. To exterminate as many orcs as possible – in the war, this was above all for him.

He loved Ukraine so much! He said that if the price of the future existence of our free state was to pay for it with his own life, then he was ready to do that. He was sure that if we did not stop the invader now, the same thing would happen in a hundred years; so we must draw conclusions from our history and finally finish it... And he also loved his native town of Energodar very much, and dreamed that one day he would show it to me, and this town would be free – as he remembered it,” says Hanna Kudyna, Sviatoslav’s girlfriend.

Hanna, like her brothers-in-arms and friends of Sviatoslav, is doing everything in her power to share the memory of him with society, now considers it her mission and is making efforts to ensure that all fallen military are given due respect.

In Zaporizhzhia, Sviatoslav Naumychev is honored on the Alley of Heroes – a memorial complex on Shevchenko Boulevard. His bell rings among others at the symbolic installation “Tree of Memory” in the Metallurgists Park. Recently, his mountain ash tree has been growing in the newly created “Honour Park” at Khortytsia. The Sviat’s flag is also installed at the national memorial on Independence Square in Kyiv. It is on various online platforms, exhibitions, and expositions dedicated to the memory of our military.

Andrii Shyshatskyi, the platoon commander, who was with Sviat side by side from the first day of the war, says that his brothers-in-arms miss him very much. Everyone loved and respected him. He was a talented drone operator. Everyone could always rely on him; he personified confidence and was a spiritual guide for many people. Moreover, he was an example of a professional approach to combat activities. Currently, the unit military are continuing his work with dignity. In addition, above the enemy positions, the drone, updated by Sviatoslav, which bears his name, make the invaders’ life a living hell.

Sviatoslav Naumychev’s believe was the following: this war is not about territory, but about what the world will be like in the future. “If Ukraine – read “democracy” – does not win, then the result of this war will untie the hands of many dictators. They will understand that force and weapons rule the world, and there is not far from a nuclear catastrophe. Therefore, it is safe to say that this war threatens the entire world. If the bloody dictator is not stopped, and if he does not capitulate, all the worst forces will begin to flourish globally. We must do everything in our power to prevent the dictatorship from winning…” he said these words in an interview that took place in March 2024.

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For his military merits during his service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, he was awarded the honorary badges of  Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “Gold Cross” and “For exemplary Military Service” of the 3rd degree, as well as the order medal “For Indomitable Spirit” of the All-Ukrainian United “Kraina”.

The petition to award Sviatoslav Naumychev the title of Hero of Ukraine, published on December 04, 2024, has gained the required number of votes and is still under consideration.

Heroes do not die! We remember the worthy son of Ukraine Sviatoslav Naumychev, a courageous military, a wonderful person…

Today, more than 300 Zaporizhzhia NPP employees are destroying russian invaders in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, about 500 ZNPP employees have passed through the army.

20 employees of the Zaporizhzhia NPP gave their lives for Ukraine. Four defenders are officially considered missing; the fate of a number of other military is currently unknown.

Sviatoslav was the initiator of several collections for the necessary equipment and components. He always made a significant contribution himself, together with his brothers-in-arms. In the autumn of 2024, the last collection was announced – for a powerful antenna for a drone called “Baba Yaha”, which would allow more effectively performing combat missions and saving the lives of Ukrainian military. At that time, over UAH 90 thousand of the required UAH 130 thousand were collected. Nevertheless, it became possible to use these funds only in the fall of current year (due to legal procedures).

As Andrii Shyshatskyi informs, by the time the funds became available, they had already received the antenna, thanks to the assistance provided by volunteer organizations of the Khmelnytskyi and Rivne NPPs. Instead, a car for the military staff was urgently needed, because the day before they had lost two (one car was hit by a drone, and the second one ran over a mine). Therefore, that amount was allocated to the collection for a car. Nuclear employees of the RNPP, KhNPP and ZNPP provided assistance again – and the military have already got a combat-ready pickup - cross-country vehicle.