Practice for a Russian Invasion – Ukrainian Civilians Take Up Arms

Practice for a Russian Invasion

Maxim Dondyuk/ DER SPIEGEL

It remains unclear what Russia might have in store for eastern Ukraine, but nationalist groups are preparing for the worst. The right-wing scene in the country is varied and complex, but one thing is certain: It is attracting an increasing number of followers.

By Benjamin Bidder and Uwe Klussmann

On the outskirts of Kiev, men lay on the ground, rifles at the ready. For the moment, they’re firing at cardboard, but soon the targets could include Russian soldiers or eastern Ukrainian separatists. The black-red banners of Ukrainian nationalists flap above them — among the trees of the derelict troop training area where Soviets once learned how to shoot.

Ready, aim, “breathe deeply and think before you fire,” yells Mykola Ishenko, 48. Two decades ago, he was a drill sergeant in the Ukrainian army. Now he’s stuffed himself back into a uniform and wants to make the transition from civilian to fighter. They exercise, throw knives, engage in hand-to-hand combat. Due to a lack of sandbags, they kick and punch logs.

Their unit is called the group of “Three Hundreds,” and it is comprised of dozens of civilian defense leagues that were formed during the insurgency on the Maidan, Kiev’s Independence Square. Their ideal is that of the national partisan and they have organized in order to defend the Ukrainian state. They include cosmopolitan, Western-oriented students, but also hard-boiled right-wing extremists who view the toppling of President Viktor Yanukovych as only the first step of a “national revolution.” Many Maidan activists have been showing up at the military training camp since Russia’s annexation of Crimea, with around 50 men turning up at the site in Kiev each day.