Ukraine

The Azov Battalion

Is there a small grain of sad truth in Putin’s ravings about Nazism in Ukraine?

What is it?

The Azov battalion (aka regiment or detachment) is a volunteer paramilitary unit in Ukraine. It was formed in the spring of 2014, during the Euromaidan revolution, and later fought in the War in Donbas against Russian-backed separatist forces. As I write it is heavily involved in the defence of Mariupol, possibly a last-ditch stand.

The battalion is named after the Azov Sea, and its symbol is a wolfsangel (a Nazi-era symbol). The unit has been accused of neo-Nazism and racism by human rights groups, and several of its members have been implicated in war crimes.

Despite these allegations, the Azov battalion reportedly remains a popular unit among many Ukrainians, who see it as a patriotic force defending their country from Russian aggression.

The battalion has also been praised for its effectiveness as a fighting force. It has played a key role in several key battles in the 2022 war with Russia, and is heavily engaged in the defence of Mariupol .

Growth

Its vague beginnings lie back in 1982 with a group of hooligans (‘ultras’) who supported the FC Metalist Kharkiv football club.

The core gained focus in early 2014 when the battalion consisted of just over 100 men, but rapidly expanded in size as more volunteers joined its ranks.By May 2014, the battalion had around 500 members.

Initially, the group was independently funded, one of the main financiers of Azov being Jewish-Ukrainian billionaire and oligarch Igor Kolomoyskyi.

Ihor Valeriyovych Kolomoyskyi is a Ukrainian–Israeli–Cypriot billionaire, businessman, and politician, the former Governor of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. Kolomoyskyi is rated as the second or third richest person in Ukraine since 2006 — Wikipedia

Today, the Azov battalion is a part of the Ukrainian National Guard, and has a strength of around 3,000 men.

“Azov” is now officially called “Special Operations Detachment”, with combat duties focused on reconnaissance, counter-reconnaissance, EOD (explosive ordnance disposal), interdiction and special weapons operations.

Political stance

In 2014 it was essentially a separatist movement fighting against Donbas separatists.

In recent years, the Azov battalion has become more than just a military unit — it has also developed into a political movement, with its own training camps, schools, and media outlets.

The Azov battalion has been accused of neo-Nazism, racism and anti-Semitism by human rights groups.

I note that Kolomoyskyi, one of the initial financiers, is Jewish.

The Azov Battalion’s extremist politics and professional English social media pages have attracted foreign fighters, from countries including Brazil, Italy, the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Greece, Scandinavia, Spain, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Russia. About 50 Russian nationals are members of the Azov regiment. — Wikipedia

Does Putin have a point?

Putin has rambled at length and, at times, in confusion about his reasons for invading Ukraine. Is it removing nazism or about putting history to rights?

He might have had a point about nazism, but he has lost any moral high ground, if, indeed, he ever had any at all, now that he inhabits that amoral land where the extreme right and extreme left co-exist.

For me, the problem is that the Azov battalion has been incorporated into Ukraine’s defence force. The Ukraine government might have seen that as the best way to control them but it does imply state endorsement. Not absorbed or integrated, but incorporated, so their esprit de corps continues to stand and their political beliefs still have a focus.

That will not change in the near future.

And let’s not forget that even the United States has its right-wing extremists too.

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…Ukraine

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