By Smartencyclopedia with agencies
According to the Kremlin, individuals referred to as “saboteurs” have crossed the border from Ukraine into the Belgorod region, leading to a Russian “counter-terrorism” operation.
Following a two-day conflict, Russia claims to have surrounded the rebels and eliminated over 70 of them, forcing the remaining fighters to retreat back into Ukraine. Russia has dismissed them as Ukrainian militants, whereas Kyiv argues that they belong to two anti-Kremlin paramilitary organizations.
Ukrainian officials assert that these fighters are Russian citizens from the Liberty of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), aiming to establish a “security zone” for Ukrainians.
Both groups have previously been linked to an international legion involved in defending Ukraine’s territory.
Andriy Yusov from Kyiv’s intelligence directorate stated that both groups were operating independently within Russian territory, with no involvement from Ukrainians. Ukrainian television referred to them as militiamen and “Russian volunteers.”
The Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) gained attention in March 2023 when it participated in a cross-border raid in Russia’s Bryansk region involving 45 individuals, as claimed by the group.
Unverified Russian reports mentioned incidents of gunfire, casualties, and hostages, while the RDK stated that they had crossed the border to encourage Russians to rebel against their government. The group denied taking any hostages and safely retreated into Ukrainian territory.
The leader of the group is Denis Kapustin, also known as Denis Nikitin, a Russian nationalist who openly advocates for a mono-ethnic Russian state.
In 2020, a Ukrainian investigative website alleged that he had connections to neo-Nazi organizations, and Nikitin has previously mentioned his involvement with a movement of football hooligans.
Nikitin’s RDK group accuses Russia’s mainstream opposition of being indecisive in the Ukraine conflict.
Another member of the corps named Fortuna told Ukrainian media in November of last year that their group consisted of 120 volunteers who joined willingly, distinguishing themselves from conscripted or contracted Ukrainian soldiers.
On the other hand, the Liberty of Russia Legion (FRL) is a different organization that fights alongside Ukrainian troops against Russian forces. They use a white-blue-white flag, which is seen by some in the Russian opposition as the flag of a “free Russia.”
Denis Nikitin, the leader of the volunteer corps, stated that while both groups aim to overthrow the Putin regime, the legion’s fighters tend to identify more as centrists.
However, on May 22, the legion announced that it had “liberated” the Russian village of Kozinka, located just across the Ukrainian border to the southwest of Belgorod. They claimed to continue liberating the Belgorod region along with the RDK.
“The myth that Russian citizens are safe and the Russian Federation is strong has once again been shattered,” they added. The legion also posted videos showing their flag carried by balloons over Moscow.
The exact size of the legion remains unclear, but according to their website, they claim to be fighting in full cooperation with the Armed Forces of Ukraine and under Ukrainian command.
A member known as Caesar, who is perhaps the most well-known soldier within the legion, emphasized that no one in the group was forced to join, and all members were contracted soldiers within Ukraine’s international legion. He mentioned that a small number of Russian soldiers had surrendered to Ukrainian forces, specifically to switch sides.
In response to Moscow’s designation of the legion as a “terrorist organization,” the group pointed out that it had previously been dismissed as non-existent.
There is some skepticism regarding the military significance of these two groups. Ukrainian pundit Volodymyr Fesenko stated that there are various units, and they appear to focus more on public relations than actual combat.
Former Russian MP Ilya Ponamarev, who is now a Ukrainian citizen, mentioned on Facebook in August 2022 that the legion, the volunteer corps, and another group called the National Republican Army had signed a declaration with a shared objective of liberating Russia from Vladimir Putin’s rule.
Source: BBC