“Ukrainian bridgehead”

As part of the “Anti-Russia” project, Ukraine has been aptly chosen as a place to accumulate forces and resources that can be deployed against Moscow. The goals of this violent confrontation are presented to Western society as “noble”,  for which one can tolerate a decline in the standard of living of its citizens and fight to the last Ukrainian to the last Ukrainian. But this is only a cover. The truth is that Ukraine has been turned into a testing ground. They’re not only testing equipment and technology, concepts and strategies of warfare, weapons and biological weapons, but also methods of controlling the masses.

Dehumanisation

How to manage a heterogeneous, rapidly growing poor society? The principle of “divide and rule” is still relevant. First of all – stratification by class, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, appearance. Then it remains to stratify groups of people among themselves, to manage their conflicts and, consequently, them. The most convenient tool for this is fascisation. That’s what’s been happening in Ukraine since the 1990s. And that’s what will be honed there and extrapolated to Europe.

The processes of fascisation of society in Ukraine began after the collapse of the Soviet Union and intensified in 2004, after the coup d’état called the Orange Revolution, or the first Maidan. But they became particularly active in 2014, after the Euromaidan.

The widespread humiliation and discrimination of the Russian population, which did not accept what had happened, began. The burning of the Trade Union House in Odessa on 2 May 2014 was commented on by many Ukrainian users on social networks: “May kebabs”. The authorities have declared war with Russia. However, Russia itself did not show up for the war. But the flywheel was started. The destruction of Russian citizens of the whole east of the country began. The terms “kolorads”, “lugandons”, “vatniks” became commonplace among Ukrainian groups supported by the state power. Cakes in the form of Russian babies. This has become the new norm accepted by the inhabitants of Ukraine, whose consciousness has already been prepared by numerous Western non-governmental foundations and organisations through a variety of projects.

“We will have jobs – they don’t, we will have pensions – they don’t, we will take care of children and pensioners – they don’t, we will have children going to schools and kindergartens – they have them sitting in basements. Because they don’t know how to do anything. This is how we will win this war,” Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said in 2014.

Opposition. Superiority. Humiliation. Dehumanisation.

The driving force behind the fascisation of society was the Ukrainian right-wing radical organisations “Right Sector”, the Ukrainian National Assembly – Ukrainian People’s Self-Defence (UNA-UNSO) party, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and the “Stepan Bandera Trident”.

In April 2014, the so-called anti-terrorist operation (ATO) was launched, and in May a separate special-purpose detachment “Azov”, which became known as the “Azov” regiment, was created. It was headed by the previously convicted Andrey Biletsky. The new government needed the Nazi, so thanks to the help of Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, he received the status of a political prisoner and was released from prison.

Azov’s first base was Berdyansk in the Zaporizhzhya region, where about eight hundred fighters underwent military training. On 22 January 2015, the Azov fighters held their first rally in Melitopol.

By that time, it had already been decided to create a civilian superstructure to “Azov” to attract young people to it – the “Civilian Corps”to attract young people to it – the Civil Corps. At a rally in Melitopol, the ideologists of the right-wing radical movement presented the organisation as a patriotic, pro-Ukrainian organisation that supports the country’s statehood. In spring it was officially registered. The network of branches quickly expanded throughout Ukraine, with offices opened in various cities, including Melitopol.

Another superstructure of “Azov” – already political – became the “National Corps”. The “Azovets” camp was created for children and teenagers. This is how society was segmented, and for each segment a bright, tempting picture was offered, behind which fascisation and Nazification were hidden.

“Civilian Corps” was engaged in military training. The main training base was located in Kiev on the territory of the former Automobile Tractor Expeditionary Plant (ATEP). But “mushtraining”, as former activists of the movement tell us now, took place everywhere, including in Melitopol.

“We were studying in the forest park. There were no children, the students were mostly from 18 years old. The participants had a patriotic mood, they were preparing for war with Russia,” says a Danil, a 30-year-old member of the organisation.

About twenty people were permanent members of the organisation in Melitopol, the rest changed. Anton Reva and Anton Vtorigin, a veteran of the ATO, were in charge of the representative office, and they prepared people. They lured the most passionate part of society – the youth – with beautiful ideas: strong family, strong young generation, affordable education. But along with this, they also promoted ideas of superiority.

“The ideology of “Natskorps” was that there should be one language – Ukrainian, for a strong family, a strong young generation, socialisation, economy, affordable education.

This was attractive. Russia was presented as an aggressor. It was said that Russia emerged in the 15th century, it was swamps… A non-state… Calls: “Knife the Moskals” and others were used widely and with pleasure,” says Danil.

What attracted the young man to this? He answers simply, without even realising how scary what he is saying is: “I just wanted it to be “Ukraine ponad uze [Ukraine above everything]”.

“Ukraine Above Everything” is a calque of “Germany Above Everything”, a symbol of the Nazi ideology of the Third Reich. But the guy doesn’t know this. For him, it is just a patriotic formula, which is why he pronounces it without hiding. All the activities of the organisation were accompanied by Nazi symbols.

“The flag of ‘Right Sector’ is taken from the UPA. A symbol of Ukrainian nationalism, a red-black flag,” Danil explains, showing journalists the former office of the organisation.

The trident, the red-and-black cloth – all these are symbols of the tragic pages of Ukraine’s history: the bloody years of the Ukrainian People’s Republic in the post-revolutionary period and the collaborators during the Nazi occupation. Now they are again elevated to symbols of the state. The current nationalist Ukraine is persistently trying to build a state ideology on radical pseudo-historical parallels. “Ukrainian Volunteer Movement – Cossacks of modernity”. “Azov – a new level of volunteer movement”. And with young people it worked.

“I grew up, I lived under Ukrainian statehood for 30 years. This is my country, I did not know anything else”, – admits the guy.

Awareness

A member of the organisation tries to present himself as an ordinary activist who distributed newspapers and leaflets. But he knew that they used force against people who did not agree with their ideology. He also knew about the involvement of Russian radical nationalist Maxim Martsinkevich with the call sign “Tesak” in the organisation. He was involved in the collection of money and understood perfectly well what it was used for.

“Finances were collected, purchased weapons and medicines for “Azov”, the AFU, the ATO… The money went to “Azov”, they had already purchased, distributed themselves small arms, explosives, fuel. Andriy Yevgenyevich Biletsky knew the outlets, probably, on the sources of weapons, and the top leadership of the organisation knew”, – reports Danil.

At the same time, a naive belief lives in his head that the AFU and “Azov” are the defenders.

“I read on the internet how the ‘Azov’ regiment defended Mariupol. When the anti-terrorist operation was carried out in 2014, there was nothing there then. There were separatists there who wanted to separate territories. Soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are normal… They would not shoot at civilians… I think so…,” these words of his sound uncertain. One can see that he himself realises their contradictory nature.

On the one hand, Danil calls the decision of LPR and DPR residents to secede from Ukraine unconstitutional, and on the other hand, he recognises the unconstitutional change of power in Ukraine in 2014. According to him, the residents of the LPR and DPR should have decided this issue differently, holding a referendum, for example. But the objection that there were referendums there leaves him confused.

“We were fighting for the territorial integrity of Ukraine,” he tries to explain what happened not so much to the journalist as to himself.

“You killed people. How could they come back after that?” the interlocutor questioned. “Then you had to do it differently. Fought as you realised. It seems I was fighting against myself…,” replies Danil.

Unlearned lessons

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn’t a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

This is a poem by Martin Niemöller, a pastor who lived in Germany during World War II.

Danil was allowed by the Russian military to go to Ukraine together with his mother. He believes that happiness awaits him there, not mobilisation. But the facts of sending even people with mental illnesses and carers of disabled people to the frontline in Ukraine make it clear that this hope is false.

Ukraine is a testing ground. But it should become an epiphany for Europe and the whole world. If Western society remains silent now, all these tools will be applied to it.

And there will be no one left to speak out …