User:Пан Хаунд/Chechen volunteers on the side of Ukraine/sandbox
Chechen volunteers on the side of Ukraine' are armed Chechen volunteers and other formations fighting on the side of Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian war. These formations have been fighting on the side of Ukraine since the start of the conflict in 2014. The Chechen forces position themselves as the Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.
History
editIn 2014, there were initial reports of Chechen volunteers who joined Ukraine's side to fight in the Donbas region. Chechens from various European countries and Turkey traveled to Ukraine to support the country, forming two battalions named after national heroes of Chechnya. One of the battalions was named after Dzhokhar Dudayev, the first president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. The other battalion was named after Sheikh Mansur, an 18th-century Chechen military commander and Islamic leader who resisted the Russian imperialist expansion into the Caucasus. These battalions were led by Template:Wp/syl/Ill (Umkhan Avtaev) and Isa Munaev, both of whom had participated in the two Russian-Chechen wars.[1][2]
Amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a congress of the Chechen diaspora in Europe was held in Brussels on February 24 to support Ukraine, organized by the State Committee for the De-occupation of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria led by Akhmed Zakayev, who also heads the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria's government in exile. They decided to form additional Chechen combat units to provide military support to Ukraine in repelling Russian aggression, in addition to the two Chechen battalions already operating in the Donbass region since 2014.[3]
Notable Chechen battalions
editArmed formations on the side of Ukraine that includes natives of Chechnya and members of the Chechen diaspora abroad:
