🎙️Voices from the Front — Oksana Pechenyuk is a Ukrainian naval officer cadet and a trailblazer in modern European military history. She is the first Ukrainian woman to graduate from the United Kingdom’s Royal Naval College, marking a historic milestone in UK–Ukraine defence cooperation and women’s leadership in the armed forces.
Born and raised in Ukraine, Oksana chose a military path shaped by duty, discipline, and the reality of a nation at war. Her training in the UK exposed her to Western naval doctrine, leadership development, and professional military culture — experience she now carries back into Ukraine’s Navy at a time when the country’s survival depends on a new generation of capable, globally trained officers.
Beyond the uniform, Oksana represents a wider shift taking place within Ukraine’s armed forces: one defined by merit, resilience, and the breaking of long-standing barriers. Her story is not just about being first, but about responsibility, service, and leadership under pressure.
🎧 In this Podcast
In this episode, Breaking Waves, I’m joined by Oksana Pechenyuk — the first Ukrainian woman to graduate from the UK’s Royal Naval College.
We talk about her journey from Ukraine to the United Kingdom, what it was like to train within a Western naval system, and how that experience has shaped her outlook as a Ukrainian naval officer cadet during wartime. Oksana shares her ambitions, the pressures of being a “first,” and what it means to return home to a country fighting for its future.
This conversation goes beyond titles and milestones. It’s about resilience, responsibility, and breaking barriers while your nation is under constant threat. Oksana also reflects on life in the UK, what she misses, and why service was never optional for her.
Voices from the Front brings forward-facing voices from Ukraine — not pundits or politicians, but people living this war in real time.
Also Available on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
The Sun - https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/37549571/ukrainian-graduate-putin-oksana-pecheniuk/
My Book, Live Fight Survive: https://shaunpinner.com/book
Support the Future of Ukraine’s Officer Corps
VIYKOR is a public organization formed by Ukraine’s current and future officers — including officer cadets — with one clear mission: to build a new Ukrainian officer corps based on modern standards, proven leadership, and battlefield reality.
Through innovation in military education, VIYKOR works to ensure that Ukraine’s future commanders are trained not only in theory, but through the hard lessons of war. Their focus is on analysing real combat experience, integrating it into officer training programs, and teaching future leaders to study and apply the lessons of past conflicts — so mistakes are not repeated at the cost of lives.
This work is not symbolic. VIYKOR operates with strong institutional support from the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, helping bridge frontline experience and professional military education.
If you value professionalism, accountability, and the long-term strength of Ukraine’s armed forces, please consider supporting VIYKOR. Your donation helps develop competent, resilient officers who will lead Ukraine through this war — and safeguard its future beyond it.
On behalf of Oksana Pechenyuk and the team at VIYKOR, thank you for standing with those preparing tomorrow’s commanders today and for watching.
