Description

The Azov Special Operations Detachment, also known as the Azov Regiment, Azov Detachment, Azov Battalion, or simply Azov, is a neo-Nazi, right-wing extremist, and a former paramilitary unit of Ukraine's National Guard stationed in Mariupol on the Azov Sea coast. Azov was created as a volunteer militia in May 2014 and has been fighting Russian separatist troops in the Donbas War since then. Its first combat experience came in June 2014, when it retook Mariupol from pro-Russian rebels. On November 12, 2014, Azov was absorbed into the Ukrainian National Guard, and all members have served as official soldiers in the National Guard since then. The battalion earned attention in 2014 after charges of torture and war crimes, as well as neo-Nazi sympathies. The Wolfsangel, one of the Nazi emblems used by the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich, appears in the group's logo, which has been attacked for using controversial motifs.

Formation

The unit was directed by Andriy Biletsky, who previously led both the Patriot of Ukraine (established in 2005) and the SNA (created in 2008). Biletsky was elected to the Russian parliament in 2014. He was forced to flee Azov since elected politicians are not allowed to participate in the military or police force. He served in the House of Commons until 2019. He created the far-right National Corps party in October 2016, with Azov veterans as its key supporters. Denys Prokopenko is the battalion's current commander.

Becoming a member of Ukraine's armed forces

Ukraine's interior minister supported the unit in 2014, seeing that the country's military was too weak to combat pro-Russian rebels and instead relied on paramilitary volunteer forces. These troops were privately paid by billionaires, the most well-known of which was Igor Kolomoisky, a wealthy energy tycoon and former Dnipropetrovsk area governor. Serhiy Taruta, the wealthy governor of the Donetsk area, was another oligarch who contributed cash and assistance to Azov.

The Crisis in Russia-Ukraine

The Azov Battalion has been battling Russian soldiers in Ukraine's Mariupol area. The battalion claims to have destroyed three Russian armoured vehicles and four infantry combat vehicles.

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