Russian Volunteer Corps

The Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC; Russian: Русский добровольческий корпус, РДК, romanized: Russkiy dobrovolcheskiy korpus, RDK) is a paramilitary unit of Russian citizens, based in Ukraine. It was formed in August 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, to fight against the government of Vladimir Putin.[2][3][4] The group reportedly consists of Russian emigrants who are primarily united by their opposition to Putin.[2] According to Ukrainian military officials, the group is not a part of the Ukrainian armed forces.[2] The group is a far-right organisation.[2][4][5][6] Its leader is a famous Neo-Nazi Denis Kapustin.[7]

Russian Volunteer Corps
Русский добровольческий корпус
LeadersDenis "White Rex" Kapustin
Dates of operation22 August 2022 – present
IdeologyWhite Movement

Ultranationalism

Class collaboration
Political positionFar-right
Sizeup to 200 fighters[1]
Allies Ukraine
Freedom of Russia Legion
Opponents Russia
Battles and wars
Flag
Websitehttps://rusvolcorps.com/

The group claimed responsibility for a March 2023 raid into the Bryansk region of Russia. Since May 2023, it has been launching larger cross-border raids into the Belgorod region of Russia, alongside the Freedom of Russia Legion.

Origin and aims

The Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) was founded in August 2022[8] The founder and leader of the group is Denis Nikitin, a famous neo-Nazi.[7][9][10][11] According to the Ukrainian news agency Glavcom, the RVC was formed by Russian volunteers who had started fighting for Ukraine in the Azov Regiment and other units in 2014.[12] According to Polish news agency Vot Tak, unlike the Freedom of Russia Legion, the leadership of the RVC does not rely on Russian POWs-turned-defectors, but on Russian right-wing emigrants living in Ukraine.[6]

The RVC says it is made up of ethnic Russians fighting to defend Ukraine against Russia's invasion and to overthrow the government of Vladimir Putin.[2] It asserts Russia's government should abandon its imperial ambitions and instead focus on improving the well-being of ethnic Russians. The RVC say they believe in self-determination for Russia's various ethnic minorities and "want to see a smaller, ethnic Russian state".[5][13][14]

RVC uses the symbols of the Russian Liberation Army, which collaborated with Nazi Germany during World War II.[5][6]

Members of the group include former FSB agent Ilya Bogdanov[15] and former actor Kirill Kanakhin.[16]

Ideology

According to official RVC statement, their flag is ideological fusion of Victor Larionovs organizations - a person "from whose ideas, principles and beliefs we build off of, drawing parallels of historical and political continuity".[17] Victor Larionov was a member of a White movement who, while being exiled in 1930s created a "White Idea" - an organzition that in December 1937 would join Russian Fascist party.[18] After Socialist coalition came to power in France in 1938, Larionov, among others was deported to Germany, where he became an employee of "Novoe Slovo" a pro-Nazi newspaper published by Russian émigrés in Berlin between 1933 and 1944. During the war worked for Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories, was a bember of ROA.[18]

In May 2023 RVC posted their official manifesto called "Homo ethnicus".[19] In this manifesto RVC rejects both Liberalism and Communism while presenting a third way - an "Ethnic worldview" encompassing unity by blood and by nation (ethnicity) essentialy advocating for class collaboration:

Outside this system of coordinates lies the ethnic worldview. In it, the economy is neither a basis nor a criterion for assessing human essence: “I don’t care what social stratum you belong to and how much you earn. We belong to the same blood, to the same people, which means we are brothers.”

and also

It is not enough to build a Russian national state - you still need to offer the population a new, ethnic view of the world. A world where your social background, your income level, your gender won't matter. Where only your blood, your abilities and personal achievements will play a role.

Organization and administration

The group gathers its forces through recruiting anti-Putin activists with civilian backgrounds and then coordinates with various political factions that move individuals across borders. Those associated with the RVC come from differing ideological backgrounds. They frequently share nothing other than a mutual opposition to the invasion of Ukraine coupled with the aim of ending the current Russian government.[5]

Reuters has recounted assertions that "RVC fighters [have] received regular salaries from the Ukrainian defence ministry" as well as that the overall "unit [has] numbered up to 200 fighters". However, the news agency has cautioned that these statements have not been independently verified.[5]

Affiliations

According to Ilya Ponomarev, the RVC took part in a press conference on 31 August 2022 with the Freedom of Russia Legion and the National Republican Army when they signed a joint declaration. He claimed that the RVC also agreed to join the agreement.[20][21]

In October 2022, the RVC published its manifesto, identifying itself as "part of Ukraine's Armed Forces", although Ukrainian officials did not immediately comment.[22][23] In March 2023, Ukrainian military officials said the RVC was an independent group.[2] Ilya Ponomarev, political representative of the Freedom of Russia Legion, said the RVC has contacts with the Ukrainian military but operates in a "gray area".[2]

Claimed attacks

Bryansk Oblast raid
Main article: 2023 Bryansk Oblast raid

On 2 March 2023, the Russian authorities claimed that an armed Ukrainian group crossed the border and carried out a "terrorist attack" in the villages of Lyubechane and Sushany, in Bryansk Oblast. Russia said the attackers fired on a car, killing two civilians, before the Federal Security Service forced them back into Ukraine.[24] On 9 March, Russia launched a barrage of missile strikes at Ukrainian civilian infrastructure in what it called "retaliation" for the attack.[25] The Russian Volunteer Corps claimed responsibility for the alleged cross-border raid, and posted videos of armed men in Lyubechane with their insignia, urging Russians to "rise up and fight" against the government.[22]

Ukrainian officials denied involvement, saying it was either a Russian false flag attack or a case of Russians rebelling against their government.[3]

On 6 April 2023, the Russian Volunteer Corps again claimed to have crossed the border into Bryansk Oblast, entering the village of Sluchovsk. While Russian authorities claimed that an attempted incursion was prevented, the Russian Volunteer Corps released video showing them inside the village. During the incursion, combat operations were allegedly carried out.[26]

Belgorod Oblast raids
Main article: 2023 Belgorod Oblast incursions
Members of the Russian Volunteer Corps on 24 May 2023. Denis 'White Rex' is in the middle foreground.

On 22 May 2023, the RVC and the Freedom of Russia Legion launched a larger raid into Russia, this time in Grayvoronsky District, Belgorod Oblast; videos that circulated online showed armed men who said they belonged to the RVC saying they had crossed the border to fight "the bloody Putinite and Kremlin regime".[27] The governor of Belgorod Oblast said that a Ukrainian "sabotage group" had entered the region and that a "counterterrorism regime" was introduced.[28] The paramilitaries reportedly captured several border villages. On 24 May, the RVC held a press conference on the Ukrainian side of the border. Denis 'White Rex' said they were satisfied with the raid, saying they had seized weapons, an armoured personnel carrier, and taken prisoners before leaving Russian territory after 24 hours. He said that two RVC fighters were wounded and that Ukraine provided support only with medical supplies, fuel and food. Separately, the Freedom of Russia Legion said two of its fighters had been killed and 10 wounded.[29]

See also

References
  1. "Insight: How Russians end up in a far-right militia fighting in Ukraine". Reuters.
  2. "Kremlin accuses Ukraine of violent attack in western Russia". The Washington Post. 2 March 2023.
  3. "Kremlin accuses Ukrainian saboteurs of attack inside Russia". Associated Press. 2 March 2023. Archived from the original on 10 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  4. "The Interview - Pro-Kyiv Russian group says it 'didn't lose a single soldier' in cross-border raids on Belgorod". France 24. 2023-05-24. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  5. Pikulicka-Wilczewska, Agnieszka; Pikulicka-Wilczewska, Agnieszka (11 May 2023). "How Russians end up in a far-right militia fighting in Ukraine". Reuters.
  6. Попков, Роман (2022-08-24). "«Русский добровольческий корпус», «Легион» и ССО «Азов». Как россияне воюют против Кремля на стороне Украины" ["Russian Volunteer Corps", "Legion" and MTR "Azov". How the Russians are fighting against the Kremlin on the side of Ukraine]. vot-tak.tv (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-09-01. В отличие от «Легиона "Свобода России"» руководство корпуса делает ставку не на бывших российских военнослужащих, оказавшихся в «Легионе» после сдачи в плен, а на русских правых эмигрантов, живущих в Украине.
  7. Kilner, James (4 March 2023). "The Russian neo-Nazi hooligan who led an anti-Putin militia across the border". The Telegraph.
  8. "Russian Volunteer Corps fighters claim to have again infiltrated Russian territory – video". The New Voice of Ukraine. 22 May 2023 – via Yahoo News.
  9. "Denis Kapustin". Anti-Defamation League. 6 June 2023.
  10. "Der Neonazi-Krieger" (in German). Der Spiegel. 14 February 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2023. The neo-Nazi is officially registered on the ground floor of a grey apartment building. Nikitin, who was born in Moscow, spent his youth here.
  11. "Leader of Russian Volunteer Corps Placed on Interior Ministry Wanted List". The Moscow Times. 27 March 2023.
  12. "Российская оппозиция начинает вооруженное сопротивление Путину: подписано декларацию" [Russian Opposition Starts Armed Resistance to Putin: Declaration Signed]. Главком | Glavcom (in Russian). 2022-08-31. Retrieved 2022-09-01.
  13. "За что мы сражаемся?". Telegraph. 2022-11-24. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  14. "Explainer: Which Russian Far-Right Groups are Fighting in Ukraine?". The Moscow Times. 24 March 2023.
  15. Roth, Andrew (24 May 2023). "'We are Russians just like you': anti-Putin militias enter the spotlight". The Guardian.
  16. "В нападении на Брянскую область участвовал актер Кирилл Канахин — Mash". EADaily (in Russian). 3 March 2023.
  17. "О нашей символике и преемственности. (On our symbols and continuity.)". Telegram. 28 August 2022.
  18. Суржик Викторович, Дмитрий (2020). "ГАЛЛИПОЛИЕЦ-ТЕРРОРИСТ-ЮГЕНДФЮРЕР: ВИКТОР АЛЕКСАНДРОВИЧ ЛАРИОНОВ". Исторический формат (3): 55–57.
  19. Weiss, Peter (29 May 2023). "Homo ethnicus / Человек этнический". Telegraph.
  20. ""Русский добровольческий корпус", легион "Свобода России" и "Национальная республиканская армия" РФ подписали декларацию о сотрудничестве" ["Russian Volunteer Corps", Legion "Freedom of Russia" and "National Republican Army" of the Russian Federation signed a declaration of cooperation "]. gordonua.com (in Russian). 31 August 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-01.
  21. "Илья Пономарев опубликовал "Ирпенскую декларацию" российской оппозиции: "Вооруженное сопротивление путинскому фашизму"" [Ponomarev published the "Irpen Declaration" of the Russian opposition: "Armed resistance to Putin's fascism"]. hvylya.net (in Russian). 2022-08-31. Retrieved 2022-09-01.
  22. "'Fear your partisans' A volunteer unit led by a Russian neo-Nazi raided a small town and crossed back into Ukraine. Meduza explains the bizarre incursion and what it could mean for the war". Meduza. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  23. Kilner, James (4 March 2023). "The Russian neo-Nazi hooligan who led an anti-Putin militia across the border". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 March 2023. It is based in Ukraine, although it is not clear if it has the official backing of the Ukrainian army or government.
  24. "Russia accuses Ukraine of cross-border attack in Bryansk". Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  25. "Updates: Russia pounds Ukraine in 'retaliation' for border attack". Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  26. "Russian Volunteer Corps attacks Bryansk Oblast again". 6 April 2023. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  27. "Russian regional governor says Ukrainian 'sabotage group' crossed border". Reuters. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  28. "Russian Border Region Says Ukrainian 'Sabotage' Unit Carried Out Incursion". The Moscow Times. 22 May 2023.
  29. "Belgorod: Russian paramilitary group vows more incursions". BBC News. 24 May 2023.
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