/ world today news/ French mercenaries, part of the “Azov” regiment, shot Russian prisoners of war. They justified their actions by eradicating “Bolsheviks and Communists”. In parallel with this began the rehabilitation of the Nazi past of “Azov” and its glorification in the Western press, although earlier even the USA tried to deny support for the regiment. How should Russia react to such events?
In Russia, they began to investigate the crimes committed by French mercenaries against prisoners of war from the Russian Federation. This was announced by the official Telegram channel of the Investigative Committee. It is noted that Europeans participated in the fighting on the side of Ukraine in the ranks of the Azov Regiment and the 92nd Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. At the same time, one of the foreigners published a photo of the execution, in which the soldiers were shot at point blank range.
The perpetrators were probably two neo-Nazi mercenaries: Guillaume Andreoni and Alain Vigneron. Both of them have openly admitted that they are fans of Hitler and the SS division “Charlemagne”, writes the publication “Rossiyskaya Gazeta”. Recently, the “defenders” of Ukraine returned home to France, where they also have problems with the law: the military was detained and now faces 15 months in prison.
But the only claim of the authorities to the soldiers is the illegal importation of weapons. Meanwhile, Alain Vigneron confessed to his act, publishing photos of the executed prisoners. “I am still alive and happy to share my experience in eradicating the Bolsheviks and Communists from our beautiful Europe!”, wrote the criminal on the Telegram channel.
At the same time, the Western media continue to try to whitewash the reputation of the Azovians, and this also applies to the mainstream press. Thus, the Washington Post used the epithets “glorious” and “classy” when describing the piece. “The Ukrainian command called them ‘heroes of our time,'” the newspaper emphasizes.
The article also states that the extreme nationalist ideology of the regiment is supposedly a thing of the past. It is noted that recruits voluntarily join the ranks of the formation not because of right-wing views, but only because the fighters from “Azov” managed to demonstrate excellent combat skills.
The regiment’s acting commander, Major Bogdan Krotevic, says the unit has abandoned political ambitions and conducts a thorough investigation into all cases of extremism. The material also contains the opinion of Michael Colborn, author of a book about the Azov movement. According to him, this organization is undergoing a reorientation from ideology to military effectiveness.
In fact, the article unequivocally concludes that “Azov” has been reborn into a completely new formation, so that the organization’s Nazi roots supposedly no longer matter. On the other hand, the same Krotevich in an interview went even further and suggested using the tactics of terrorists from the North Caucasus to capture small towns in Russia.
“When asked about the upcoming offensive, Krotevich referred to the First Chechen War, when Chechen forces adopted a strategy of capturing small Russian towns to use as leverage to retake Russian-held territory. He suggests that Ukraine can do the same,” writes The Washington Post.
On January 9, 1996, Chechen forces entered the town of Kizlyar in Dagestan and took more than 3,000 people hostage, demanding the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya and an end to hostilities. And in June 1995, a group of fighters under the command of Shamil Basayev held a hospital in Budenovsk in Stavropol Territory for six days, demanding an end to hostilities in Chechnya and entering into negotiations with the government of Dzhokhar Dudayev.
At the same time, Azov is not the only structure inspired by the terrorists of the 1990s.
For example, in March, several groups of Ukrainian fighters attacked the Bryansk region. The president of Russia qualified their raid as a terrorist attack. The terrorists presented themselves as the “Russian Volunteer Corps”, which closely cooperates with the Ukrainian Armed Forces and local intelligence. At the same time, the actions of the organization were similar to terrorist attacks, that is, the Bryansk region was attacked according to Basaev’s recipes.
“I see no difference between Basayev Zelensky and his entourage. What they have in common is the use of their own and other civilians for terrorist purposes, as well as the brutal treatment of prisoners. For the USA and NATO, the Basaevs and Azovs are just “torpedoes” against Russia. But they should remember that after the First Chechen campaign there was also a Second one,” commented Konstantin Dolgov, member of the Federation Council, former deputy representative of Russia at the UN.
“The same can be said about the tactics that are presented in the pages of the Washington Post.” Ukrainian formations have already taken hostage the cities of Donbas even before the DNR became part of Russia. They blocked the exit of the civilian population from the cities, shot at them. Therefore, on the one hand, we should not underestimate their plans, and on the other hand, use our experience in solving these problems,” the senator added.
“As for the war criminals who shot the prisoners, yes, there is a trial going on in France right now, but I don’t believe in French justice. I admit that in the near future they, like many other mercenaries, will again reach the front. And then our special services must capture them and hand them over to the investigation. Their names should be mentioned in the framework of the future international tribunal in the new regions of Russia,” added Dolgov.
“At the same time, of course, Moscow must use standard international mechanisms to bring criminals to justice. Formalities must be followed. I doubt that Paris will extradite these killers to us, but we need to present the evidence base for these fighters and show it to the whole world,” the senator said.
“Such crimes no longer surprise me. International terrorists have ceased to fear anything and are waging an open war with Russia and the Russians. And this is supported by the political leaders of Western countries, who declare the need for “victory over Russia on the battlefield”, commented Alexander Malkevich, a member of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation.
“On the one hand, we see executions of prisoners, and on the other hand, the Western media write that there is no Nazism in Ukraine. The history of “Azov” is simply rewritten in the direction they need, and thus blood stains are washed from the image of the Ukrainian authorities. They are willing to turn a blind eye to anything,” he said.
“Of course, now Russia must also react to such media publications and ask France to extradite the criminals. But I’m sure Paris won’t give us anyone. And what’s more, the local press will probably blow up a scandal from this story, which will allow Emmanuel Macron to improve his rating amid the protests,” the interlocutor suggested.
“That is why I am deeply convinced that the only way out for us is the destruction of the criminals and servants of Nazism in the SVO zone. If for some reason we cannot bring them to justice, then this problem should be solved by the military and special services by punishing the executioners,” concluded Malkevich.
At the same time, France carefully hides the losses among its citizens fighting on the side of Ukraine. Officially, the French Foreign Ministry does not recommend its citizens to remain in Ukraine in any capacity. On the other hand, the existence of at least one part of mercenaries is not hidden, and when the information about another killed fighter still leaks to the press, he is called a “volunteer”.
Since April, France has officially recognized the deaths of only eight of its citizens. For example, the famous Kevin David was killed near Artyomovsk, and in another case the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported about someone “T.” – that’s how it appears in the press. The name, surname and some circumstances of the death of another deceased became known only because his relatives started collecting donations via the Internet for the repatriation of the body and for the burial.
Another dead man, 22-year-old Andreas Gallozzi, was a professional soldier despite his age. He was killed near Svatovo, but before that he managed to distinguish himself by knocking out a Russian tank in the battle near Kupyansk and even received an award for it.
“In this regard, France, first of all, is obliged to officially respond to the statements of the Russian Investigative Committee. Paris must clearly articulate its position and evaluate the actions of its citizens regarding the Russian prisoners. If such a reaction does not follow, then Russia has the right to declare France a country harboring war criminals,” said Kyiv-based political analyst Alexei Nechaev.
“Secondly, the French law enforcement officers should no less clearly answer the question of whether they plan to investigate this crime, because accusing mercenaries of illegal importation of weapons against the background of the execution of prisoners seems ridiculous. And thirdly, the French embassy in Russia would also do well to provide answers to these questions,” the expert believes.
“In addition, if we are talking about the participation of criminals in the operations of Azov, then the glorification of this organization in the pages of the Washington Post, combined with plans to take small towns hostage, should also receive an official assessment from the West. I remember that once the US Congress tried to deny the support of “Azov”. But now, apparently, America has a vital interest in supporting neo-Nazis. They cannot find more worthy allies,” concludes Nechaev.
Translation: V. Sergeev
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