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Foreign fighters in Ukraine - who are they and is there one background for these groups,?
Ukraine has attracted many foreign fighters, some of whom fight on the side of Ukraine and others on the side of Russia, but the question is, who are these foreign fighters and do they have one background for these groups?
Press reports from the Ukraine battlefields have shown that Russian mercenaries fighting in Ukraine, including the Kremlin-backed Wagner Group, are linked to far-right extremism, including an organization designated as terrorist by the United States.
Reports from the German DW have shown links between pro-Russian forces and violent right-wing extremism, including those directly linked to Wagner. Some posts on Telegram, dated March 15, 2022, showed the flag of the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM), a white-superior paramilitary organization designated as a terrorist by the United States.
Intelligence services to be more worried, German authorities has made efforts to adopt a plan of action against right-wing extremism. The war in Ukraine is pushing the intelligence services to be more worried. "It shouldn't be overstated," says Thomas Haldenwang, head of the domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Bureau for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV). He added, young men took to social media channels pledging to join the fight in Ukraine, but Haldenvang described them as simply engaging in "bragging", meaning that they are not linked to right-wing organizations, but are motivated by enthusiasm to fight in Ukraine.
Intelligence agency has identified right-wing
The local intelligence agency in Germany has identified right-wing extremists planning to take up arms in Ukraine and authorities are trying to prevent them from leaving the country by canceling their passports. Haldenwang says that no more than a few cases have been confirmed of German far-right activists who have actually left for Ukraine and "in these specific cases, we do not assume that they actually took part in any hostilities." Far-right groups in Ukraine - a force of attraction Far-right groups have gained significant power in Ukraine.
Ukraine attracting far-right
Since 2014, Ukraine already has a precedent in attracting far-right groups and individuals from other countries, who have sought to use the current political instability to gain combat experience. In this context, Kakbir Rekawik, a fellow at the Center for Research on Extremism at the University of Oslo who has studied foreign fighters in Ukraine since 2014, believes that not all extremists who have traveled aim to fight, adding: "All the people who go say the same thing: 'I'm here for humanitarian reasons.'" ...unlike in 2014, they do not appear to be motivated, as a group, by a particular set of ideological metaphors."
According to report entitled "Who are the foreign fighters traveling to Ukraine? What we know and what we don't know" published by peoplesdispatch.org, Ukraine - a mixture of foreign fighters likes “Azov fighters”, and European neo-Nazis, it can be said that what exists can be described as a mixture of fighters, and this raises the concern about the return of foreign fighters to their homelands who have become far-right extremists and have combat experience.
However, with some weeks into the war, the issue of foreign fighters raises many other questions that cannot be answered yet. Although the phenomenon of foreign fighters is not new, recent developments in Syria and Iraq have put this issue back on the EU's security agenda.
ISIS or Al-Nusra in Syria and Iraq
Here, the Western Balkans cannot be excluded from this trend. Here, we should not look at violent extremism in the region in general through the lens of “jihadist” Islamists and foreign fighters who joined ISIS or Al-Nusra in Syria and Iraq but rather look at other forms of extremism, such as far-right and ethnic groups, and this is a secondary concern.
The fighters is an illegal act National legislation recognizes that fighting foreign groups is an illegal act, so returnees from the Middle East could face security response in their home countries, while those returning from Ukraine usually remain exempt from prosecution and severe penalties.
This highlights the issue of the handling of the “issue” of foreign fighters by Western Balkan governments, especially after an alleged coup attempt was thwarted during the Montenegrin general elections in late 2016. National legislation recognizes that fighting foreign groups is an illegal act, so returnees from the Middle East face a robust security response in their home countries, while those returning from Ukraine usually remain exempt from prosecution and severe penalties.
This highlights the issue of the handling of the “issue” of foreign fighters by Western Balkan governments, especially after an alleged coup attempt was thwarted during the Montenegrin general elections in late 2016.
By: Jassim Mohamad – Bonn
