Azov Order: The neo-Nazi branch of the Ukrainian National Guard with members reaching parliament

With the blood of civilians in the Ukrainian village of Sartana in Mariupol to be still a fresh one diplomatic tension was created between Greece and Russia for who is responsible for the bloodshed. Russian ministry says neo-Nazi paramilitary “Azov Battalion” responsible for massacrenoting that it hit residential areas with rockets.

“On February 26, from 16:00 to 16:20, Ukrainian nationalists from the” Azov “battalion hit with residential jet systems” Grant “residential squares of the village Sartana on the outskirts of Mariupol and school no. 8 of Mariupol. As a result there are dead among the civilians and destruction of houses. “The Russian Defense Ministry warned that similar provocations were being prepared by the Ukrainian nationalists,” said a statement from Russian Defense Ministry Igor Kanashenkov.

The Greek side, however, stated, through a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, that it has evidence that Russia is lying and that the Moscow forces are the ones responsible for the catastrophe that left ten Greeks dead. “Athens has evidence that what the Russian Embassy invoked is false, that is, that no Russian forces were operating on the outskirts of the village of Santana, where expatriates were killed,” the Foreign Ministry categorically rejects Moscow’s objections, as expressed by Greek representatives. .

But what is this infamous neo-Nazi “Order of Azov”?

Photos of an elderly Ukrainian woman driving an AK-47 during combat training in view of her went viral war in Ukraine and which have brought to the fore far right Ukrainian forces.

Valentyna Konstantynovska, a 79-year-old resident of the eastern port city of Mariupol, was photographed taking part in exercises triggered by the accumulation of Russian troops across the border, telling reporters: “If something happens, I will defend my home. my city, my children “. The story gained international attention as a vivid depiction of the bravery of ordinary Ukrainians in the face of the threat of Russian invasion.

But the picture took on a new dimension when it was revealed that the combat training was hosted by the “Azov Battalion”, an extremist movement notorious for neo-Nazi his ideology.

The Azov Battalion is a far-right, neo-Nazi militia founded in 2014 in Berdyansk and currently based in Urzuf, Donetsk Oblast, as a special police unit in the National Guard of Ukraine.. Born of pre-existing neo-Nazi groups “Patriots of Ukraine” and “National Socialist Assembly”the order has deep ideological roots in Nazism and was openly opposed to both the separatists and Kyiv in its beginning.

This battalion took part in the battles between the pro-Russian separatist forces and the Ukrainians in June 2014 during the crisis in southeastern Ukraine.

The members of the Order are from eastern Ukraine and speak Russian, while some recruits come from the eastern cities of Donetsk and Luhansk. The first commander of the regiment was the far-right Andriy Biletsky, who led the neo-Nazi Patriots of Ukraine and the National Socialist Assembly.

The unit has been indicted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCR) for war crimes, such as mass looting, use of torture, beatings of civilians, kidnapping of journalists, electric shock and drowning.

The unit has also been linked to neo-Nazis, with members wearing neo-Nazis and SS symbols. German ZDF television watched Azov battalion fighters wearing helmets with swastikas and pagan runes. The symbol of the unit that the battalion fighters wear on their sleeves is a side Runos, typically a wolf hook (wolf trap) which is pronounced: Wolfsangel.

Relations with the upper echelons of Ukrainian politics

One of the main patrons of the group is Arsen Avakov, the interior minister from 2014 to 2021, who allowed the expansion and later integration of paramilitary forces into the National Guard. Avakov actively supported the parliamentary candidacy of his members, including neo-Nazis

The change of leadership to participate in democratic processes caused the Order to eliminate part of its open opposition, nationalize and form two partner organizations: the National Corps Party and the Azov Civil Corps.

Because of this connectivity, it was the first group to be nationalized. Attempts were then made to eliminate foreigners and extremists against Kiev with limited success. Those who were controlled were often sent to the Politburo, but Nazi influence remains entrenched.

The continuing close entanglement of Nazism, politics and order is evidenced by the deep ties between the commanders and the party. For example, Maxim Zorin, a former longtime commander and current leader of the National Assembly, facilitates the training of volunteers and the recruitment of the Order to locations where Hitler has spoken in the past. In addition, the current commander Denis Prokopenko has been in the unit since day one and maintains its party and Nazi culture.

In 2018, the National Assembly created a new Azov subsidiary known as National Druzhyna, a street gang of about 600 members. This group has been responsible for multiple violent attacks against Roma, Jews and other minority groups, as well as political opponents, including academics.

The members of the battalion are similar to the other paramilitary units that have helped Ukraine defend itself against the Russian army for the past six years. But Azov is much more than a militia.

According to Time magazine, it has its own political party, two publishing houses, summer camps for children and a vigilant force known as the National Militia, which patrols the streets of Ukrainian cities with police. While of course he uses Facebook to proceed with recruiting members.

Unlike its ideological counterparts in the US and Europe, it also has a military wing with at least two training bases and a huge arsenal of weapons, from drones and armored vehicles to artillery.

Outside of Ukraine, Azov plays a central role in a network of extremist groups that stretches from California across Europe to New Zealand.

The battalion acts as a magnet for young men who want to gain combat experience. Ali Soufan, a security adviser and former FBI agent who has studied the team, estimates that more than 17,000 foreign fighters have come to Ukraine in the last six years from 50 countries.