The Azov Battalion | The neo-Nazis of Ukraine

The Azov Battalion : The neo-Nazis of Ukraine.
The far-right militia, once banned by the U.S., is part of Ukraine’s National Guard

When Russia annexed Crimea in February 2014, it faced no military resistance. Ukraine did not have an adequate number of combat-ready troops to mount a defence. Subsequently, when Russia-backed separatists took over government buildings in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region as a prelude to full-fledged insurgency, the Ukrainian military again proved unable to quell the rebellion. It was against this background that the Azov Battalion was formed in May 2014.

The Azov began as a military infantry unit made up of civilian volunteers drawn from far-right, neo-Nazi groups that were active in Ukraine, such as the Patriot of Ukraine gang and the Social National Assembly (SNA). With its highly motivated band of fighters, the Azov unit recaptured the strategic port city of Mariupol from the separatists. Following this crucial military triumph — which had eluded the official forces of Kyiv — the Azov unit was integrated into the National Guard of Ukraine in November 2014.

The Azov Special Operations Detachment (Ukrainian: Окремий загін спеціального призначення «Азов», romanized: Okremyi zahin spetsialnoho pryznachennia "Azov"), also known as Azov Regiment (Ukrainian: Полк Азов, romanized: Polk Azov), Azov Battalion (until September 2014), is a right-wing extremist, neo-Nazi, formerly paramilitary unit of the National Guard of Ukraine, based in Mariupol, in the Azov Sea coastal region. Azov formed as a volunteer militia in May 2014, and has since been fighting Russian separatist forces in the Donbas War. It saw its first combat experience recapturing Mariupol from pro-Russian separatists in June 2014. It was initially organised as a volunteer police company, then, on 12 November 2014, Azov was incorporated into the National Guard.