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Who are the militias that are moving the war from Ukraine to Russia?

2023-05-26 07:34:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

All the attention of experts and the military was focused on the disputed city of Bakhmut and the expectation of the start of a Ukrainian counter-offensive. But suddenly there was news of fighting on the other side of the border, on Russian territory, in the border region of Belgorod.

Moscow is accusing Ukrainian commandos of crossing the border to attack Russian targets. In fact, the attack was taken over by two Russian anti-Putin organizations, which have aligned themselves with Ukraine.

Both of these groups have released footage (which is impossible to verify) showing camouflaged Russians aboard armored vehicles stolen from the enemy or bragging to the cameras that they shot down a helicopter.

This is not the first time such an incursion has taken place.

In March, fighting was reported in several villages located a few hundred meters from the border, the responsibility of which was claimed by the same organizations. This time the news is the announcement of the occupation of a locality and the intention to create an area controlled by them in Russia, a goal that, however, seems clearly unattainable.

Dark threads

The fighters involved in this action belong to two groups that are regularly talked about. The first is known as the Russian Volunteer Corps, while the other is called the Legion of Freedom of Russia. The Russian Volunteer Corps is considered far-right and is led by Denis Nikitin, a former martial arts master.

Meanwhile, the political affiliation of the Legion of Freedom of Russia is unknown. Both organizations were formerly part of the Ukrainian military, but now claim to operate independently. Despite Kiev's denials, it seems unlikely that two such peripheral groups would have been able to organize such an operation without the support and approval of the Ukrainian military or its intelligence services.

In this context, it is likely that Kiev has resumed the methods adopted by the Russians since the beginning of the fighting in the Donbass region in 2014, when the theoretically independent forces were actually trained and armed by Moscow.

Putin needed a breakthrough, and Bakhmut came at the right time

It remains to be understood what the objective of this operation is. Is it really about establishing under control a "liberated zone" on Russian territory, which will inevitably need Ukraine's support?

Or are we dealing with a maneuver aimed at avoiding attention for an attack that may resemble another time? For weeks, the Ukrainians have declared that they will launch a broad counteroffensive in an attempt to break through the Russian army's defensive lines, which have nevertheless been significantly strengthened in recent months along hundreds of kilometers of the front line.

Russia has just claimed a military success with the full capture of the city of Bakhmut, after months of fierce fighting and thousands of dead on both sides. On the other hand, Ukraine claims that there are still "pockets of resistance" that still exist, but Putin needed a breakthrough and Bakhmut arrived at the right time.

By attacking Russian territory through actions carried out by Russian rebels, Ukraine reduces the weight of the occupation of Bakhmut, and thus forces Russia to commit military resources to protect the rear of the front, at a time when the front can a decisive confrontation occurs.

Finally, it should be noted that this is one of the rare circumstances in which Russian civilians have experienced the direct consequences of war, while Ukrainians have experienced them directly for 15 months nationwide and for more than 9 years in Ukraine. Eastern.

As has happened several times in the past, the Kremlin's retaliation to these operations risks being brutal. The escalation of the situation will inevitably continue./ Adapted from CNA.al