Over the past three days, two militias of Russian fighters opposed to the government of Vladimir Putin have conducted military actions inside Russian territory, in the Belgorod region, on the border with Ukraine, announcing that they have begun an operation to “liberate” the Russia.
There are no certainties about the extent and effects of these attacks: the Russian government claims to have rejected them and to have killed at least 70 of the militants. On Tuesday, at the end of the second day of operations, the anti-Putin militias instead announced that they had conquered three small towns (Kozinka, Gorkovsky and Shchetinovka) and controlled an area of about 200 square kilometers in Russian territory. The international media have not been able to verify and confirm either of the two versions: however it is certain that there were clashes both on Monday and on Tuesday, in which 13 people were injured and another was killed.
The actions on Russian territory were carried out by the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Free Russia Legion, two militias born in 2022 about which there is not much information at the moment. From the reconstructions of observers and experts, and from what the militias themselves say, the two groups are said to be composed solely of Russian citizens, despite having their de facto headquarters in Ukraine. The two groups are said to be recognized by the Ukrainian military and have constant relations with the Ukrainian secret services (partly confirmed by the Ukrainian government as well).
The Russian Volunteer Corps and the Free Russia Legion call themselves “partisans” and in recent months had claimed responsibility for some acts of sabotage within Russian borders. Putin’s government considers them “terrorist groups”, but claims that the attacks in the Belgorod region were carried out in collaboration with Ukrainian forces.
The Russian Volunteer Corps is made up of Russian far-right militants: it was founded by Denis Nikitin, a former mixed martial arts fighter with many ties to Western neo-Nazi groups and similarly oriented military and paramilitary formations in Ukraine. Nikitin lived in Germany and Ukraine, he was a member of organized and violent football support groups. Among the leaders of the Russian Volunteer Corps there is also Ilya Bogdanov, a former Russian intelligence officer from Vladivostok who moved to Ukraine in 2014.
The Corps had publicly said in the past that it had no relationship with the Free Russia Legion, but in recent months the two organizations seem to have found an agreement to carry out joint military actions “despite the many differences”. A photo has also recently appeared on Telegram that sees Nikitin alongside Maximilian Andronikov, known as “Cesar”, one of the best-known members of the Legion. The photo seems to suggest some form of military cooperation.
Maximilian Andronnikov, known as “Cesar”, and Denis Nikitin, members of the two militias (Telegram Russvolcorps)
The Free Russia Legion was born in March 2022. From the information available, it appears to be made up of a few hundred men and is less clearly politically connoted. A fighter of the group said in a video posted on the militia’s social channels: “We are Russians just like you. We are people just like you. We want our children to grow up in peace and freedom, and to be able to travel, study and be happy in a free country.” Ilya Ponomarev is a former Russian parliamentarian in exile and has defined himself as the political representative of the Legion: he has claimed responsibility for the attacks of recent days, highlighting that the opening of this new front would have forced the Russian army to spread over an even wider territory their own defensive forces.
The political intent of the two groups would also be to demonstrate that Putin’s government is not capable of defending its borders and that an internal opposition to the regime is possible.
According to many analysts, including Yuriy Karin citato dal New York Times, the Corps and the Legion could be used by the Ukrainian government to carry out cross-border operations avoiding taking responsibility for the attacks: “It is a mirror operation to the one set up by the Russians in 2014 in Crimea and Donbass”. The Russian government then sent armed men not wearing official uniforms, initially denying any connection to the fighters.
One of the images released by the Russians of Western equipment used in the attacks (AP)
Russia on Tuesday released photographs of Western assets used by militias in the attacks, including two US-made military vehicles. The US State Department described himself as a “skeptic” on the veracity of the images, but he still distanced himself from the operation: “The United States does not encourage or support attacks inside Russian territory”.