Ukrainian volunteer battalions

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11th territorial defence battalion "Kyivan Rus" fighter, 2014

Ukrainian volunteer battalions (Ukrainian: Добровольчі батальйони, romanized: Dobrovolchi bataliony, more formally Добровольчі військові формування України, Dobrovolchi viiskovi formuvannia Ukrainy, 'Volunteer military formations of Ukraine', or abbreviated Добробати, Dobrobaty) mobilized as a response to the perceived state of weakness and unwillingness to counter rising separatism in spring 2014.[1] The earliest of these volunteer units were later formalized into military, special police and paramilitary formations in a response to Russian military intervention in Ukraine.[2][3] Most of the formations were formed by the government agencies of Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Internal Affairs; the minority are independent.

As of September 2014, 37 volunteer battalions took active part in battles of the War in Donbass.[4] Some of the battalion fighters are former Euromaidan activists, but their social background is highly diverse. They include students and military officers.[5] They enjoy a high level of support in Ukrainian society ranked second among the most respected institutions in the country. However, their close ties with Ukrainian oligarchs bring up a high risk of the volunteer formations becoming politicized or turning into private armies.[6] Ordered to leave the front lines in 2015, the volunteer battalion phenomenon was largely over within a year of its beginning.[7]

Government controlled volunteer formations[]

Ministry of Defence[]

Since spring 2014, Ministry of Defence had formed 32 territorial defence battalions.[8] At the end of 2014, territorial defence battalions were reorganized as motorized infantry battalions.[9]

Main article: Territorial defence battalions (Ukraine)

Besides territorial defence battalions, several regular units of Armed Forces of Ukraine were formed from volunteers, such as or .[3] In 2015 the was created from volunteers of Donbas Battalion who decided to switch from National Guard of Ukraine to Armed Forces.

Ministry of Internal Affairs[]

Ministry of Internal Affairs had established 56 special tasks patrol police units sized from company to battalion.[10] After several reorganizations, this number shrunk to 33 units.[8]

Main article: Special Tasks Patrol Police (Ukraine)

The National Guard of Ukraine, subordinated to Ministry of Internal Affairs, had established several reserve battalions, among which were Donbas Battalion and formed from volunteers and Maidan activists.[11]

According to Interior Minister Avakov, by mid-April 2016 205 service personnel of the ministry's volunteer battalions had been killed in action, National Guardsmen included.[12]

Ukrainian Volunteer Corps[]

Ukrainian Volunteer Corps, 2014

Right Sector had formed several battalions that are known as Ukrainian Volunteer Corps.[13] In spring 2015 there were attempts to integrate Ukrainian Volunteer Corps into the Ukrainian Army or National Guard.[2]

Main article: Right Sector § Ukrainian Volunteer Corps

Battalion OUN[]

Battalion of "Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists" was operating in the area of Pisky, Donetsk.[14] The battalion was disbanded in September 2019; as one of the last units comprised purely of volunteer soldiers.[15]

Foreign fighters[]

Foreign fighters mainly from Belarus, Georgia and Russia (about 100 men from each country) have joined the volunteer battalions.[16] They were joined by fighters from Australia, the United States, France, Germany, Kazakhstan, Norway, Sweden, Georgia, Poland, Spain, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Croatia, Italy, Albania[17] and Canada.[16]

Foreign fighters from Belarus and Russia have asked for Ukrainian citizenship fearing persecution at home.[16] The Ukrainian parliament passed laws to simplify this for them.[16] Nevertheless, foreign fighters from Belarus and Russia have complained that gaining this citizenship took too long.[16]

Muslim battalions[]

According to New York Times, there are three volunteer Muslim battalions fighting for the Ukrainian side.[18]

Dzhokhar Dudayev battalion[]

Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion, originally named "Chechen battalion", it was set up in March 2014. It was later named after Chechnya's first president and insurgent leader Dzhokhar Dudayev and it is based in Novomoskovsk in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.[19] As of late May 2015, the unit was in the process of being legalized as part of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry.[19] Its Ukrainian members will join the , while its foreign members are expected to join army units under a bill enabling foreign fighters to get Ukrainian citizenship.[19] Most of the members are ethnic Ukrainians, but there are also Chechens from European countries as well as from Chechnya and it also includes other Muslims like Azerbaijanis, Ingush and Tatars, as well as Georgians.[19] The battalion "views the war as part of a broader struggle against Russian imperialism and the Kadyrov regime".[20] The battalion specializes in subversion and countering the subversive groups.[19]

Sheikh Mansur battalion[]

Another Chechen battalion, named after Sheikh Mansur, has been reported defending the front line near Mariupol in 2015.[21] It was created by former Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion members.[19] The battalion was disbanded in September 2019; as one of the last units comprised purely of volunteer soldiers.[15]

Noman Çelebicihan Battalion[]

Main article: Noman Çelebicihan Battalion

The Noman Çelebicihan Battalion is a battalion of Crimean Tatars based in Kherson region bordering Crimea.[22] It did not participate in any combat operations. The battalion virtually ceased to exist in 2016. Many of its members had joined other volunteer battalions or enlisted in the Ukrainian army. The battalion reportedly received assistance from Turkey.[23]

Sources[]

References[]

  1. ^ Ilmari Käihkö, "The War Between People in Ukraine", The War on the Rocks, 21 March 2018
  2. ^ a b Pike, John. "Ukrainian Military Personnel". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 2017-02-09.
  3. ^ a b "Volunteer battalions in eastern Ukraine: who are they? | UACRISIS.ORG". Ukraine crisis media center. 2015-03-16. Retrieved 2017-01-22.
  4. ^ "Они воюют за Украину: список батальонов, которые принимают участие в АТО". Слово и Дело (in Russian). Retrieved 2017-03-11.
  5. ^ Albuquerque, Adriana (2015). "Volunteer Battalions". Ukraine. A Defence Sector Reform Assessment. Proceedings of the ... Swedish American Workshop on Modeling and Simulation : Sawmas. p. 22. ISSN 1650-1942.
  6. ^ Margarete Klein. Ukraine’s volunteer battalions – advantages and challenges Swedish Defence Research Agency Report, RUFS Briefing No. 27, April, 2015
  7. ^ Käihkö, Ilmari (2018-04-03). "A nation-in-the-making, in arms: control of force, strategy and the Ukrainian Volunteer Battalions". Defence Studies. 18 (2): 147–166. doi:10.1080/14702436.2018.1461013. ISSN 1470-2436.
  8. ^ a b c "Heroes or Villains? Volunteer Battalions in Post-Maidan Ukraine" (PDF).
  9. ^ "Структура військ територіальної оборони Збройних Сил України". www.ukrmilitary.com. Retrieved 2017-01-23.
  10. ^ ""Нацполіція і Нацгвардія мають бути, як ви – бійці добробатів", – Арсен Аваков (ФОТО, ВІДЕО)". МВС. Retrieved 2017-01-23.
  11. ^ "National Guard volunteer battalions. "Donbass" – the path of formation | НГУ". ngu.gov.ua. Retrieved 2017-01-28.
  12. ^ "Avakov speaks of losses of National Guard". UNIAN. 18 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  13. ^ "Right Sector leader proposes setting up 'Ukrainian Volunteer Corps' | KyivPost". KyivPost. 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2017-01-22.
  14. ^ "Ukrainian army command orders OUN volunteer battalion to leave Pisky, Donetsk region". KyivPost. 10 April 2015. Archived from the original on 11 April 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  15. ^ a b "Volunteer Battalions Hand in Their Weapons in Eastern Ukraine".
  16. ^ a b c d e Foreign fighters struggle for legal status in Ukraine, Kyiv Post (18 October 2015)
    Foreign nationals fighting for Ukraine in Donbas demand passports in exchange for their service, Ukraine Today (19 October 2015)
    Why a Russian Is Fighting for Ukraine, Newsweek (4 August 2015)
    They Came to Fight for Ukraine. Now They’re Stuck in No Man’s Land, Foreign Policy (19 October 2015)
    Georgians in Ukraine fight shadow war, The Moscow Times (19 January 2015)
  17. ^ ABC News (Albanian TV channel) (3 December 2017). MERCENARET SHQIPTARE NE UKRAINE ABC NEWS. YouTube. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  18. ^ Andrew E. Kramer. Islamic Battalions, Stocked With Chechens, Aid Ukraine in War With Rebels. New York Times. 7 July 2015.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Chechen fighter transfers struggle against Kremlin to Ukraine, Chechen fighter transfers struggle against Kremlin to Ukraine], Kyiv Post (27 May 2014)
  20. ^ Oleg Sukhov. Russia’s war against Ukraine renews Chechen animosities. Kyiv Post. 27 March 2015.
  21. ^ Veteran Chechen fighters locked in fierce battle with Russian-backed militants in east Ukraine. Ukraine Today. May 18, 2015.
  22. ^ "First pictures of the Batallion n.a. Noman Çelebicihan posted". QHA. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  23. ^ "Crimean Tatar battalion got help from the Crimean Tatar diaspora of Turkey". QHA. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
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