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- Ukraine’s 3rd Independent Assault Brigade is supporting the evacuation from the city of Avdiivka.
- This battle-hardened force has a controversial political history.
- It was born out of brigades with ties to far-right groups and neo-Nazism.
Ukraine’s 3rd Independent Assault Brigade was sent to support the evacuation from the city of Avdiivka in Donetsk region, it was announced on Saturday.
The brigade is fighting to stabilize the front line with counterattacks. Russian army trying to surround Ukrainian army According to a report by the Institute for War Research, an orderly evacuation was carried out in Avdiivka.
“Despite the fact that the occupiers are suffering unjust losses, the situation in Avdiivka remains extremely difficult,” the Telegram account of the 3rd Independent Assault Brigade said.
The brigade is led by a right-wing politician and former white supremacist.
The 3rd Independent Assault Brigade is one of Ukraine’s most veteran military units, but its roots are debatable.
The brigade was born out of the Azov Regiment and is led by right-wing politician and former white supremacist Andriy Biletsky.
In 2010, Biletsky was quoted as saying that Ukraine intended to “lead the world’s white race in the final crusade against the Semitic-led Untermenschen.”
Biletsky founded the controversial volunteer militia Azov Regiment in 2014. Some of its members wear symbols of the Third Reich and are supported by the US alt-right and neo-Nazis.
In 2018, The Guardian wrote that Andrii Biletsky had “tonened down his rhetoric in recent years”.
The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade was created by the merger of Azov special forces, founded by former Azov veterans after the siege of Mariupol in 2022.
In 2023, Biletsky said that there was “no split” between the Azov Brigade and the 3rd Shock Brigade,” Ukraine newspaper Pravda reported.
“The evolution of the Azov forces as part of the national army will continue. We will continue to demonstrate military prowess, ruthless fury against the enemy and unleashing our forces in the fight against the occupiers on the way to final victory. It will embody the desire to do so. The time for a decisive battle has come,” according to a translation by the Ukrainska Pravda newspaper.
The brigade was highly praised for its role in defending the outskirts of Bakhmut throughout 2023, and also participated in the liberation of Kherson.
But the fringe beliefs plaguing Ukraine’s volunteer forces are being weaponized by the Kremlin. President Putin has infamously justified a full-scale invasion of the United States. Claims it is a “denazification campaign” and The Nazis ran the Ukrainian government.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s democratically elected president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is Jewish. His national approval rating peaked at over 90%.
Far-right ties have been documented on both sides of the war.
In 2022, the Russian-backed Donetsk People’s Republic awarded a medal to one of its soldiers who killed Ukrainian “nationalists.” While receiving their medals, the fighters were photographed wearing neo-Nazi symbols.
Advivka has fallen.
Ukrainian troops withdrew from the war-torn eastern town of Avdiivka on Saturday after months of heavy fighting.
In the post of face bogot itUkrainian military commander-in-chief Oleksandr Shirushkyi wrote that the decision was made to withdraw from the area “to avoid a siege and to protect the lives and health of our military personnel.”
The withdrawn troops are moving to “more favorable fronts” and are “taking measures to stabilize the situation and maintain our positions,” Shirschiky continued.
Biletsky praised the fighting spirit of his men who fought to protect Avdiivka.
“We would like to thank the soldiers who fought a worthy battle against the enemy in Avdiivka in the face of the comprehensive numerical superiority of the Russian army in manpower, equipment and artillery shells. They did everything and more. We thank them for their resilience,” said the commander of the 3rd Independent Assault Brigade.on Telegram.
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