2023-07-10 09:21:15
A state of anger and tension dominates Turkish-Russian relations following Ankara’s recent decision to return a number of leaders of the “Azov Battalion”, which Moscow classifies as “terrorist”, from Turkey to Ukraine, accompanied by its chief, Volodymyr Zelensky, in violation of an agreement that required them to stay there until the end of the war.
A Turkish step that Moscow described as a direct violation of the terms of agreements concluded in late September, according to which 55 Russian prisoners of war were released in exchange for 215 prisoners held by Moscow, including 5 commanders from the “Azov Battalion”.
Russian anger
The Azov Battalion, a unit created by volunteers in 2014 before being integrated into the Ukrainian army, became famous for defending the coastal city of Mariupol in the southeast of the country, which Russia seized following a months-long siege.
After weeks of fierce fighting and bombing, the last defenders of Mariupol, fortified in the Azovstal factory, surrendered in May 2022. The Kremlin also considers it a Nazi group linked to ultra-nationalist circles, which committed war crimes, and was classified by the Russian judiciary as a “terrorist” organization in August of the same year.
In the context, Oleksandr Fomin, a researcher at the Center for Security Issues of the Russian Academy of Sciences, says that the leaders of that battalion, which is classified as terrorist, were already involved in war crimes before the start of the war, ruling out that they will have an influence in the current battles.
Oleksandr Fomin explains, during his statements to “Sky News Arabia”, that the return of these fighters with Zelensky from Turkey was aimed as follows:
The Ukrainian president obtained a diplomatic victory in light of his loss of the counter-attack on which Kiev was betting heavily. Ankara’s response to Western and American demands to help Kiev in its war once morest Russia. The attempt to take advantage of these fighters to recruit and establish cells that carry out terrorist attacks once morest Russia is considered an end blow to any hope regarding the grain agreement concluded between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by Turkey.
Will Kyiv benefit?
Dr. Watling Kudrakhin, a specialist in international affairs at the National University of Odessa, believes that the return of the Azovstal battalion commanders will greatly contribute to raising the morale of the soldiers on the fronts, and Kiev will benefit from the experiences of these men in the fighting, and it is not excluded that they will be assigned leadership tasks in the Ukrainian army. This angers Moscow.
Watling Kudrakhin also ruled out, during his statements to “Sky News Arabia”, that the return of these leaders would cause tension between Ankara and Moscow, given that the common interests between the two sides are very great, indicating that Ankara is the only link at the present time between the West and Russia.
The beginning of the Azov battalion
It was established as a volunteer formation in May 2014 with the aim of fighting pro-Russian separatists. The combat unit was formed in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov, from which the movement takes its name. It follows the right-wing extremist ideology, affiliated with the Ukrainian National Guard, and its members belong to 22 different countries in the world. Between 2015 and 2016, the battalion gained a lot of attention and garnered sympathy from good Nazi movements. The battalion used Nazi slogans and was accused of using Nazi symbols in its emblem. The US Congress banned financial aid for her in 2018, but it was later canceled. Members of this battalion face up to 20 years in prison and no less than 15 years in accordance with Russian law. The 5 leaders who returned to Kiev during the past year led efforts to defend the coastal city of Mariupol, the largest city captured by Russia during the war, and they were arrested during the battles, but a prisoner exchange agreement brokered by Turkey stipulated that they remain in Ankara until the end of the war.
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