Putin code names a bunch of Russian army units based on the names of Ukrainian cities

In executive orders on Monday, President Putin assigned code names to several Russian army units based on the names of Ukrainian cities. For example, the 6th Tank Regiment now has the honorary name “The Lviv Guards,” the 68th Tank Regiment is now “The Zhytomyr-Berlin Guards,” and the 163rd Tank Regiment is “The Nizhyn Guards.”

According to the magazine RBC, the names are intended to commemorate the units’ roles in liberating these cities in the Second World War.

• Since 2014, separatists have waged an armed conflict in eastern Ukraine. Many Russians have fought in the war, and Kyiv accuses the Russian military of directly participating in the fighting, but Moscow has always claimed that any Russian combatants present in Ukraine are there strictly as private citizens.