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Russian Orthodox Army

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Russian Orthodox Army
(Русская православная армия)
LeaderPavel Gubarev
Dates of operationMay 2014–present
HeadquartersDonetsk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine
Active regionsDonbas, Ukraine
Ideology
Size4,000[3]
Part of United Armed Forces of Novorossiya
Allies
Opponents
Battles and warsWar in Donbas
Websitehttp://rusarmy.su

The Russian Orthodox Army (Russian: Русская православная армия, Russkaya pravoslavnaya armiya) was a Russian separatist paramilitary group in Ukraine that has been fighting Ukrainian forces in the Donbas War. It was founded in May 2014[1] allegedly by former members of the Russian National Unity. The ROA later joined the Oplot Fifth Separate Infantry Brigade.[9]

Background

The Russian Orthodox Army is one of a number of pro-Russian separatist militia units in the Donbas region described as "pro-Tsarist", "extremist" Orthodox Christians.[10][11]

Russian National Unity was a violent paramilitary founded by Alexander Barkashov in 1990, but had been declared liquidated by the authorities in 2000.[12] However, with the onset of war in Ukraine, many militia groups declared themselves adherents of the ideology of the RNE, most notably Pavel Gubarev, a prominent spokesman with multiple titles (leader of the Donbas militia, governor of the Donetsk People’s Republic, its foreign affairs minister, and the founder of the New Russia Party), who declared himself leader the RNE section in Donetsk.[13][14][15]

The ROA reportedly had 100 members at the time of its founding, including locals and Russian volunteers. As fighting between separatists and the Ukrainian government worsened in Donbas, their membership rose to 350, and later 4,000.[3][better source needed][dubious – discuss][citation needed]

Engagements

Notable engagements of the ROA include the June 2014 skirmishes in Mariupol and Amvrosiivka Raion.[16] The headquarters of the ROA is located in an occupied Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) building in Donetsk city.[17] Members had no special training apart from the usual conscription service in the army[18] and swore allegiance to Igor Girkin ("Strelkov"), insurgent and Minister of Defence of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, as of January, 2017.

Religious persecution

Along with other separatist groups in the region, the ROA has been accused of "kidnapp[ing], beat[ing], and threaten[ing] Protestants, Catholics, and members of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church… as well as participat[ing] in anti-Semitic acts."[4]

In June 2014 the group murdered Pentecostals in Slaviansk.[needs update]

In late November 2014, the group gained attention after abducting prominent Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest, Sergeii Kulbaka, and Roman Catholic priest, Father Pawel Witek.[5][6] According to the Defence Ministry of Ukraine, the ROA has also been in conflict with another pro-Russian militia, the Vostok Battalion, which accused the ROA of looting, and of avoiding combat.[19][20]

Aftermath

In September 2014, the ROA changed its format and joined the new Oplot Fifth Separate Infantry Brigade.[21]

Notes

  1. ^ See Russian military intervention in Ukraine.

References

  1. ^ a b "У самопровозглашенной Донецкой республики появилась новая армия — Русская православная (In the self-proclaimed republic of Donetsk, a new army - Russian Orthodox)". InfoResist (in Russian). 10 May 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  2. ^ Самопроголошеному міністру оборони "ДНР" І. Стрєлкову інкримінується створення терористичної організації та вчинення терактів в Україні [Strelkova, the self-proclaimed minister of defence of the DNR terrorist organization, charged with creating and committing acts of terrorism in Ukraine]. Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine (in Ukrainian). 21 May 2014. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
  3. ^ a b c "Meet the Russian Orthodox Army, Ukrainian Separatists' Shock Troops". NBC News. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  4. ^ a b c United States Department of State (2015). International Religious Freedom Report for 2014 (Report). humanrights.gov. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  5. ^ a b Liubchenkova, Natalia (20 November 2014). "Surviving the 'Russian Orthodox Army'". The Media Project. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b c Wiser, Daniel (15 October 2015). "Russia Targets Christians, Religious Minorities in Ukraine". The Washington Free Beacon. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  7. ^ Laruelle (p. 206)
  8. ^ Laruelle (p. 206)
  9. ^ http://www.eoi.at/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Ukraine-gon_eng_web.pdf
  10. ^ Kuzio, Taras (2015). Ukraine: Democratization, Corruption, and the New Russian Imperialism. ABC-CLIO. pp. 110–111. the Russian Orthodox Army, one of a number of separatist units fighting for the "Orthodox faith," revival of the Tsarist Empire, and the Russkii Mir. Igor Girkin (Strelkov [Shooter]), who led the Russian capture of Slovyansk in April 2014, was an example of the Russian nationalists who have sympathies to pro-Tsarist and extremist Orthodox groups in Russia. ... the Russian Imperial Movement ... has recruited thousands of volunteers to fight with the separatists. ... separatists received support from Russian neo-Nazis such as the Russian Party of National Unity who use a modified swastika as their party symbol and Dugin's Eurasianist movement. The paramilitaries of both of these ... are fighting alongside separatists.
  11. ^ Laruelle, M. (2019). Russian Nationalism: Imaginaries, Doctrines, and Political Battlefields. United Kingdom: Routledge. (p. 206)
  12. ^ At the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014, there was a "renaissance" of the RNE, as it presented "a unique case of a defunct nationalistorganization whose name became such a brand that it can be instantly reactivated, based only on its faded glory. The movement’s website, soratnik.com, dormant since 2006, was relaunched..." - Laruelle, M. (2019). Russian Nationalism: Imaginaries, Doctrines, and Political Battlefields. United Kingdom: Routledge. (p. 207)
  13. ^ Laruelle, M. (2019). Russian Nationalism: Imaginaries, Doctrines, and Political Battlefields. United Kingdom: Routledge. (p. 208)
  14. ^ Mitrokhin, Nikolay (2015). "Infiltration, instruction, invasion: Russia's war in the Donbass" (PDF). Ournal of Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society. 1 (1): 234, note 38.
  15. ^ Likhachev, Vyacheslav (July 2016). "The Far Right in the Conflict between Russia and Ukraine" (PDF). Russie.NEI.Visions in English. pp. 18–28. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  16. ^ "В Мариуполе бойцы Ляшко задержали представителя "Русской православной армии" (In Mariupol Ljashko fighters detained by "Russian Orthodox army")". Mariupol News (in Russian). 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  17. ^ "Репортаж из казармы Русской Православной Армии (Reports of Russian Orthodox Army barracks)". Dialog.ua (in Russian). 17 June 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  18. ^ Baczynska, Gabriela (2 June 2014). "Quoting Old Testament, New Pro-Russia Militia Group Lines Up in Ukraine". Charisma News. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  19. ^ Daryna Krasnolutska; Tony Capaccio; Volodymyr Verbyany (27 July 2014). "Ukraine Army Advances as EU Plans Tougher Putin Sanctions". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  20. ^ Сили АТО знищили снайперів у Лисичанську [ATO forces destroyed snipers in Lysychansk]. Ukrayinska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 26 July 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  21. ^ http://www.eoi.at/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Ukraine-gon_eng_web.pdf
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