The Azov Battalion: Ukraine's Neo-Nazi Brigade?

Denazification.’ Ever since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, this word has been repeated endlessly in Russian propaganda as the central goal of the ‘Special Military Operation.’

It sounds absurd - Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy is a Jew and Nazism is seemingly nowhere to be seen in Ukrainian government, politics, or society - but Putin’s crusade against Nazism rests upon the continued existence of a tiny section of the Ukrainian military known as the Azov Regiment.

One glance at their history makes it obvious why they earned the label: a militia formed by radical fascists and white-supremacists, operating under Nazi symbols, and credibly accused of abuses and outrages upon civilians and captives.

But what is the truth behind Azov? How did it go from extremist militia to an official part of the Ukrainian military? And does it represent the rise of Nazism in Ukraine?

Today on A Day In History, we’ll explore the history of the Azov Regiments, its origins, foundation, military role, and transformation into the force currently fighting in Ukraine today. If that sounds interesting to you, then feel free to leave a like on this video and check out our other content for more insightful historical topics.

The Origins of Azov

To understand Azov, we must begin with Ukraine’s wider far-right movement.

Like any nation, Ukrainian nationalism can attract extremist elements. In the early 2000s, this was represented by groups such as the Social-National Party of Ukraine (SNPU) and its splinter group Patriot of Ukraine (PU). Some of these groups espoused fascist and pro-Nazi views, invoked Naiz symbols, and made heroes out of Ukrainian Nazi collaborators. Andriy Biletsky, who was a prominent leader in the PU, allegedly declared that Ukraine’s national mission should be to, “lead the white races of the world in a final crusade...against Semite-led Untermenschen.”

#azovbattalion #ukraine #history #ukrainevsrussia


Sources:

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Andres Umland, ‘Irregular Militias and Radical Nationalism in Post-Euromaydan Ukraine: The Prehistory and Emergence of the “Azov” Battalion in 2014’, Terrorism and Political Violence, 31, (2019)

Christopher Miller, ‘In Ukraine, Ultranationalist Militia Strikes Fear In Some Quarters’, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, 30th January 2018, https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-azov-...

Ivan Gomza, ‘Too Much Ado About Ukrainian Nationalists: the Azov Movement and the War in Ukraine’, Krytyka, April 2022, https://krytyka.com/en/articles/too-m...

Lev Glonkin, Neo-Nazis and the Far Right Are On the March in Ukraine’, The Nation, 22nd February 2019, https://www.thenation.com/article/pol...

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Report on the Human Rights Situation in Ukraine 16 February to 15 May 2016’, (2016)

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Report on the Human Rights Situation in Ukraine 16 November 2015 to 15 February 2016’, (2016)

Oren Dorell, ‘Volunteer Ukrainian Unit Includes Nazis’, USA Today, 10th March 2015, https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/wo...

Shaun Walker, ‘Azov Fighters Are Ukraine’s Greatest Weapon And Maybe Its Greatest Threat’, The Guardian, 10th September 2014, https://www.theguardian.com/world/201...

Tara John and Tim Listener, ‘A far-right battalion has a key role in Ukraine’s resistance. Its neo-Nazi history has been exploited by Putin‘, CNN, 30th March 2022, https://edition.cnn.com/2022/03/29/eu...

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‘Ukrainian fighters grease bullets against Chechens with pig fat’, Al Jazeera, 28th February 2022, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2...


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