Freedom of Russia Legion - Wikipedia

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Ukrainian military unit formed of Russian defectors

Military unit

The Freedom of Russia Legion[i] (Russian: Легион «Свобода России» , romanized: Legion "Svoboda Rossii" ; Ukrainian: Легіон «Свобода Росії» , romanized: Lehion "Svoboda Rosiyi" ; abbr. ЛСР, romanized: LSR), also translated as the Liberty of Russia Legion[10][11] or called the Free Russia Legion,[12][13] is a Ukrainian-based paramilitary group of Russian citizens, which opposes the Russian regime of Vladimir Putin and its invasion of Ukraine.[14] It was formed in March 2022 and is reportedly part of Ukraine's International Legion.[1][15] It consists of defectors from the Russian Armed Forces, and other Russian volunteers, some of whom had emigrated to Ukraine.[16][17]

The group claims to be made up of two battalions. Its estimated size is several hundred to 1,000 soldiers.[1]

On 22 May 2023, the Legion launched a cross-border attack into the Belgorod region of Russia.[8][18]

History [ edit ]

"Caesar", the

spokesperson

and deputy commander of the Legion in an interview

According to UNIAN, the Freedom of Russia Legion was formed from a company of the Russian Army who voluntarily defected to the Ukrainian side. According to the company commander, they crossed to the Ukrainian side with the help of the Security Service of Ukraine on 27 February 2022, to "protect Ukrainians from real fascists." He called on his compatriots, soldiers of the Russian Army, to join the Freedom of Russia Legion in order to save their own people and the country "from humiliation and destruction."[19] The Legion's stated goals are to repel the Russian invasion of Ukraine and ultimately depose the silovik regime of Vladimir Putin.[20]

Soldiers of the Freedom of Russia Legion in May 2022

The Legion's official Telegram channel was created on 10 March 2022, and its first post called on people to join the armed struggle against the "war criminal Putin". On 5 April, three men wearing military fatigues and black balaclavas held a press conference in Kyiv, announcing that the Freedom of Russia Legion had been formed. They said it was made up wholly of Russian citizens, including former POWs. One of the men said the Putin regime had tricked them into going to Ukraine to carry out "genocide", saying he had seen war crimes by the Russian Army.[20]

The Freedom of Russia Legion is reportedly part of Ukraine's International Legion.[1][17]

The Legion's first volunteers began training in late March 2022. Reportedly, Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel trained volunteers in using the NLAW shoulder-fired anti-tank missile, and the Legion's commanders got acquainted with the operational situation on the frontlines.[21][better source needed ]

The Legion reportedly fought alongside the Ukrainian military in the Donbas during the Eastern Ukraine offensive. The unit allegedly also organizes arson and sabotage acts inside Russia.[22] On 1 June 2022, the Legion's official Telegram (and YouTube) channel posted a video claiming to show a Russian tank being captured by the Legion. On 29 June, they said they captured a Russian POW in the Lysychansk area.[23]

On 11 June, it became known that Igor Volobuyev, the Ukrainian-born ex-vice-chairman of Gazprombank, who left Russia at the outbreak of the invasion, had joined the Freedom of Russia Legion.[24][25]

On 13 July, the Legion allegedly made a statement that it has withdrawn from active fighting, to "restore combat capability."[23]

On 31 August, the Freedom of Russia Legion, alongside the National Republican Army and the Russian Volunteer Corps, signed a declaration of cooperation in Irpin called the "Irpin Declaration". The organizations also agreed to create a political wing, to represent their interests and organize a joint information policy, led by Ilya Ponomarev.[26][27][28][better source needed ]

The Legion commander Maximillian Andronnikov "Caesar", former member of the ultranationalist Russian Imperial Movement,[2] gave an interview in December. He said the Legion had "several hundred" members. He explained: "I am not fighting my motherland. I am fighting against Putin's regime, against evil… I'm not a traitor. I'm a true Russian patriot who thinks about the future of my country". He outlined the unit's recruitment process: "several rounds of interviews, psychological tests and even a polygraph," before undergoing two months of training. Caesar said that, as of December 2022, the Legion operated under Ukrainian command and were mainly involved in artillery and propaganda at that time. Reportedly, some fought in the battle of Bakhmut.[29]

In May 2023, the Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps launched an incursion into Russia, in Grayvoronsky District, Belgorod Oblast.[31] They claimed to aim at creating a demilitarised zone along the border, in order to stop Russian artillery firing at Ukraine from Russian territory.[8][18]

Symbols and ideology [ edit ]

The Legion uses the white-blue-white flag instead of the official white-blue-red flag of Russia.[6][16] According to the manifesto of the Legion, published in their Telegram channel in April, they "carry the values of the Free Man of New Russia – freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom to choose your future", and their main goals are the overthrowing of Putin's government and "struggle for the New Russia."[32] The letter L, the first letter of the words Legion and Liberty, is also used by the Legion as one of its symbols. On the right sleeve, the Legion wears the flag of Ukraine, like other Ukrainian foreign legions.[33][23]

On 20 July 2022, the official Telegram channel posted two messages, in which the authors quoted the Tsarist official Pyotr Stolypin[34] and wrote that the Legion sees "the preservation of a united and indivisible Russia within the borders of 1991" as one of its goals and opposes separatism, and that "the most humiliated and disenfranchised among all the peoples of the Russian Federation is the Russian people."[23]

[ edit ]

The Russian government has responded to the Legion both legally and with propaganda. On 22 June 2022, Nikolay Okhlopkov, a Russian anti-war activist from Yakutsk, was arrested because the authorities alleged him of "wanting to join the Legion." The Legion denied any link with Okhlopkov. On 14 July 2022, Putin signed a new law, under which Russian citizens can be imprisoned for up to 20 years if they "defect to the side of the enemy during an armed conflict or hostilities."[23][35][36]

In March 2023 the Supreme Court of Russia declared the Legion a terrorist group, meaning citizens who join can face up to 20 years in jail.[37]

Russian state media has rarely mentioned "Freedom of Russia" during 2022. For example, as of July 2022, RT had only one video which mentioned the Legion.[23]

Several claims have been made that the group does not exist, but is a Ukrainian PR project. This claim is being spread by state-controlled Russian media and pro-Kremlin Telegram channels, which call the Legion fake or alleging it was created by Ukrainian intelligence. Illia Ponomarenko, defense and security reporter at The Kyiv Independent, commented to The Moscow Times: "There might be some [Russian] fighters, but whether it is organized in the way it is presented remains an open question… It's clearer with the International Legion — there is a large number [of foreign soldiers] and they did take part in combat, for example, in Irpin, Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk. But little is known about the [Freedom of Russia] legion." The Moscow Times also cited the report in Harper's Magazine which "described how Ukraine did not have the capacity to process and deploy foreign fighters who flocked to the country in the weeks after the invasion, and suggested foreign units were more PR than reality."[38]

See also [ edit ]

Notes [ edit ]

  1. ^ also translated as Liberty of Russia Legion,[4][5] Freedom for Russia Legion[6][7] or Legion of Freedom of Russia[8][9]

References [ edit ]

  1. ^ a b c d "Switching Sides: The Elusive 'Russian Legion' Fighting With Ukraine". The Moscow Times. 8 August 2022.
  2. ^ a b " 'We are Russians just like you': anti-Putin militias enter the spotlight". theguardian.com. That man was Maximillian Andronnikov, the self-proclaimed commander of the Freedom of Russia Legion, a paramilitary group that, until this week, was chided for its outsized internet and media activity. Under the nickname "Caesar" he has also served as a media spokesperson for the group, which has sought to largely act in the shadows and keep its membership a secret. [...] Andronnikov himself was previously a member of the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM), an ultranationalist group
  3. ^ "'I Couldn't Just Stand By': Russian Fighters Explain Why They Took Up Arms Against The Kremlin". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 7 February 2023.
  4. ^ Davis, Charles R. "Russian opposition group posts video of what appears to be an antiwar flag above Moscow following purported cross-border raid". Business Insider . Retrieved 2023-05-23 .
  5. ^ "Russian 'clean up' operation after raid on Belgorod from Ukraine". www.aljazeera.com . Retrieved 2023-05-23 .
  6. ^ a b Coles, Isabel; Trofimov, Yaroslav (7 April 2022). "Belarusians, Russians Join Ukraine's Military, Hoping for Freedom at Home". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022 . Retrieved 10 April 2022 . While the Belarusian opposition has long been inspired by Ukraine's resistance to Russia and attempts to impose authoritarian rule, the arrival of Russians willing to fight against their own compatriots is relatively new. The uniforms of the Freedom for Russia unit have the white-blue-white patch, in the colors of a new Russian flag favored by some opponents of Mr. Putin.
  7. ^ Johnson, Sabrina (9 April 2022). "Russians 'who want to fight Putin in Ukraine' given own battalion". Metro (British newspaper) . Retrieved 10 April 2022 .
  8. ^ a b c Melkozerova, Veronika (22 May 2023). "Pro-Ukraine Russian soldiers storm border region, claim 'liberation' of villages". Politico Europe . Retrieved 23 May 2023 .
  9. ^ "Ukrainian "sabotage" units engage Russian troops in the Belgorod Oblast". Georgia Today. 22 May 2023 . Retrieved 23 May 2023 .
  10. ^ Davis, Charles R. "Russian opposition group posts video of what appears to be an antiwar flag above Moscow following purported cross-border raid". Business Insider . Retrieved 2023-05-24 .
  11. ^ Hodge, Rob Picheta,Nathan (2023-05-23). "Anti-Putin Russians say they launched a cross-border attack from Ukraine. Here's what we know". CNN . Retrieved 2023-05-24 .
  12. ^ "Putin's Deserters Poised to Fight Against Him on Front Lines". Newsweek. 13 February 2023.
  13. ^ "Has Ukraine launched a 'special military operation' in Russia?". The Spectator. 22 May 2023.
  14. ^ Cole, Brendan (30 March 2022). "Former Russian Soldiers Join Ukraine Against Putin's Invasion, Kyiv Says". Newsweek . Retrieved 7 April 2022 .
  15. ^ "International Legion fights for Ukraine, democratic values". Kyiv Post. 5 July 2022.
  16. ^ a b "Охочих вступити до легіону "Свобода Росії" багато — представник легіону" [Many people want to join the Freedom of Russia Legion – a representative of the Legion]. Інтерфакс-Україна (Interfax-Ukraine) (in Ukrainian) . Retrieved 2022-04-06 .
  17. ^ a b Schwirtz, Michael (12 February 2023). "They Are Russians Fighting Against Their Homeland. Here's Why". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2023-02-26.
  18. ^ a b "Freedom of Russia Legion says they are creating a "demilitarised zone" in Russia". Yahoo News, 22 May 2023
  19. ^ "Російські військові з легіону "Вільна Росія", які воюють за Україну, дали брифінг (відео)" [Russian servicemen from the Free Russia Legion, who are fighting for Ukraine, gave a briefing (video)]. Ukrainian Independent Information Agency (UNIAN) (in Ukrainian) . Retrieved 2022-04-06 .
  20. ^ a b "The Russians Fighting Putin in Ukraine". Time. 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-04-08 . Retrieved 10 April 2022 .
  21. ^ "Добровольці легіону "Вільна Росія" воюватимуть за Україну: триває підготовка" [Volunteers of the Free Russia Legion will fight for Ukraine: preparations are underway]. Волинські новини (Volyn News) (in Ukrainian) . Retrieved 2022-04-06 .
  22. ^ "Russische Soldaten gegen Putin: im Donbass kämpfen, in Moskau Feuer legen" [Russian soldiers against Putin: fight in Donbass, set fire to Moscow]. Berliner Zeitung. 4 May 2022 . Retrieved 30 May 2022 .
  23. ^ a b c d e f "Правда ли на стороне Украины воюют россияне?". holod.media. 24 July 2022.
  24. ^ "Former Gazprombank executive Igor Volobuev joins the Freedom to Russia Legion within the Ukrainian Armed Forces". Novaya Gazeta. 11 June 2022 . Retrieved 12 June 2022 .
  25. ^ " 'I could not be part of this crime': the Russians fighting for Ukraine". The Guardian. 14 June 2022 . Retrieved 14 June 2022 .
  26. ^ "Россияне, воюющие на стороне Украины, подписали совместную «Ирпенскую декларацию»". Журнал «Холод» (in Russian). 2022-08-31 . Retrieved 2022-09-01 .
  27. ^ "Российская оппозиция начинает вооруженное сопротивление Путину: подписано декларацию". Главком | Glavcom (in Ukrainian). 2022-08-31 . Retrieved 2022-09-01 .
  28. ^ "Граждане РФ заявили о вооруженном сопротивлении Путину". ВЕСТИ (in Russian). 2022-08-31 . Retrieved 2022-09-01 .
  29. ^ " 'Not a traitor': The Russians fighting alongside Ukraine's forces". France 24. 2022-12-28 . Retrieved 2023-05-22 .
  30. ^ "Pro-Ukrainian Russian partisans advance into Russia's Belgorod region in surprise raid". news.yahoo.com. 22 May 2023 . Retrieved 23 May 2023 .
  31. ^ "Легион «Свобода России»" [Legion "Freedom of Russia"]. Telegram (software).
  32. ^ "Легион «L» — россияне, воюющие на стороне Украины". NETGAZETI.ge (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2022-06-04 . Retrieved 2022-05-09 .
  33. ^ "Легион «Свобода России»" [Legion "Freedom of Russia"]. t.me.
  34. ^ "Russian Duma toughens laws, classifies information on luxury real estate and goes on vacation". The Insider (website).
  35. ^ "Vladimir Putin enacted more than 100 new laws today. Here are the ones you need to know". Meduza.
  36. ^ "Russian Supreme Court Deems Freedom of Russia Legion Terrorist Organisation". The Moscow Times.
  37. ^ "Switching Sides: The Elusive 'Russian Legion' Fighting with Ukraine". The Moscow Times. 8 August 2022.

External links [ edit ]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_Russia_Legion