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Ukrainian volunteer battalions (Ukrainian:Добровольчі батальйони,romanized: Dobrovolchi bataliony, more formallyДобровольчі військові формування України,Dobrovolchi viiskovi formuvannia Ukrainy,'Volunteer military formations of Ukraine', or abbreviatedДобробати,Dobrobaty) weremilitias andparamilitary groups mobilized as a response to the perceived state of weakness and unwillingness of the regularArmed Forces to counter rising separatism in spring 2014.[1] They trace their origins to the "Maidan Self-Defense" militias formed during theEuromaidan in 2013.[2] The earliest of these volunteer units were later formalized into military, special police and paramilitary formations in a response to theRussian military intervention in Ukraine in 2014.[3][4] Most of the formations were formed or placed under command of theMinistry of Internal Affairs — as "Special Tasks Patrol Police" — andMinistry of Defence — as "Territorial defence battalions". A minority of battalions were independent of state control.
Most of the battalions initially didn't receive money from the government and were self-funded; some were backed byUkrainian oligarchs[5] while others received donations or started internetcrowdfunding campaigns.[6][7][8]
As of September 2014, 37 volunteer battalions had taken an active part in the battles of thewar in Donbas.[9] Some of the battalion fighters are formerEuromaidan activists, but their social background are highly diverse. They included students and military officers.[10] They enjoyed a high level of support in Ukrainian society, ranked second among the most respected institutions in the country. However, their close ties with oligarchs raised fears of the volunteer formations becoming politicized or turning intoprivate armies.[5] Ordered to leave the front lines in 2015, the volunteer battalion phenomenon was largely over within a year of its beginning.[11] Most units continued as fully integrated as units of either theUkrainian Army or theNational Guard of Ukraine.
Since spring 2014,Ministry of Defence had formed 32 volunteer battalions. The ones under the Ministry of Defence command were officially named the "Territorial Defence Battalions".[12] At the end of 2014, territorial defence battalions were reorganized asmotorized infantry battalions.[13] The idea of the territorial defence battalions, however, remained and in 2021 theTerritorial Defense Forces were later created as a more formal and structured version of the territorial defence battalions.[14]
Besides territorial defence battalions, several regular units ofArmed Forces of Ukraine were formed from volunteers, such as3rd Airmobile Battalion "Phoenix" or54th Reconnaissance Battalion "UNSO".[4] In 2015 the46th Spetsnaz Battalion "Donbas Ukraine" was created from volunteers ofDonbas Battalion who decided to switch fromNational Guard of Ukraine to Armed Forces.
According to Interior Minister Avakov, by mid-April 2016 205 service personnel of the ministry's volunteer battalions had been killed in action, National Guardsmen included.[15]
Ministry of Internal Affairs had established 56special tasks patrol police units sized fromcompany to battalion.[16] After several reorganizations, this number shrunk to 33 units.[12]
Notable Units formed between 2014 and 2015 include:
The National Guard of Ukraine, subordinated to Ministry of Internal Affairs, had established several reserve battalions, among which wereDonbas Battalion and General Kulchytskiy Battalion formed from volunteers andMaidan activists.[17]
Notable Units formed between 2014 and 2015 include:
The following battalions were not controlled by either the Ministry of Internal Affairs nor the Ministry of Defense, but independently operate.
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Right Sector had formed several battalions that are known asUkrainian Volunteer Corps.[18] In spring 2015 there were attempts to integrate Ukrainian Volunteer Corps into the Ukrainian Army or National Guard.[3]
Battalion of "Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists" was operating in the area of Pisky, Donetsk.[19] The battalion was disbanded in September 2019; as one of the last units composed purely of volunteer soldiers.[20]
A unit specialized inaerial reconnaissance anddrone warfare.[21] Aerorozvidka was nicknamed a "war startup" by some observers,[22] it began as a group of volunteer drone and IT enthusiasts. It used commercial drones to help the Ukrainian military forces.[22] It was later integrated into theUkrainian Ground Forces.
The Noman Çelebicihan Battalion was one of the three reported battalions with majority Muslim membership.[23]It was composed mostly of ethnicCrimean Tatars and was based in theKherson region borderingCrimea.[24] It did not participate in any combat operations. The battalion was formed and disbanded in 2016. Many of its members later joined other volunteer battalions or enlisted in the Ukrainian army. The battalion reportedly received assistance fromTurkey.[25]
The foreign fighter movement in 2014 was largely short-lived, with researcher Kacper Rekawek writing, "fighters arrived throughout the summer of 2014, and most of them were gone from Ukraine at some point in 2015, although some returned later, with a small group settling in Ukraine permanently."[26] By the end of 2015, Rekawek notes, "both sides took steps to professionalise their forces and incorporate the bottom-up organised volunteer battalions into e.g. the Ukrainian National Guard or, in the case of the 'separatists,' into the 'army corps.' This effectively meant an end to foreign fighter recruitment for this conflict and very few (new) foreigners joined either side after the end of 2015."[26]
On 6 October 2014 theUkrainian parliament voted to allow foreign fighters to join the Ukrainian military. That December, Ukrainian PresidentPetro Poroshenko promised that foreign fighters who join the Ukrainian military will receive citizenship. However, theKyiv Post reported that by October 2015, only one foreign fighter from Russia had been granted citizenship. The same month, 30 foreign fighters (from Belarus, Georgia, and Russia) rallied inKyiv for Ukrainian citizenship.[27]
An analysis of foreign fighters by Arkadiusz Legieć, a Senior Analyst at the Polish Institute of International Affairs, estimated that about 17,241 foreign fighters fought in Ukraine between 2014 and 2019. 3,879 of those foreign fighters supported Ukraine and joined foreign volunteer battalions. The largest group of foreign fighters in Ukraine was approximately 3,000Russian citizen volunteers. The second-largest group consisted of approximately 300Belarusians. The third-largest group consisted of approximately 120Georgians. The only other country to exceed 50 foreign fighters wasCroatia, with approximately 60 fighters. Other countries whose nationals supported Ukraine includedAlbania (15),Australia (5),Austria (35),Azerbaijan (20),Belgium (1),Bosnia and Herzegovina (5),Bulgaria (6),Canada (10),Czech Republic (5),Denmark (15),Estonia (10),Finland (15),France (15),Germany (15),Greece (2),Ireland (7),Israel (15),Italy (35),Latvia (8),Lithuania (15),Moldova (15),Kosovo (4),Netherlands (3),North Macedonia (4),Norway (10),Poland (10),Portugal (1),Romania (4),Serbia (6),Slovakia (8),Sweden (25),Turkey (30), theUnited Kingdom (10), and theUnited States (15).[28][better source needed]
The Georgian National Legion is a paramilitary unit formed of more than 700 soldiers, mostly ethnicGeorgian volunteers fighting on the side ofUkraine in thewar in Donbas andRussian invasion of Ukraine. The unit was organized in 2014 with the declared aim "to stand up to Russian aggression". The group is commanded byMamuka Mamulashvili, a veteran Georgian officer. There are also members of Georgian national legion that had experience from the Chechen wars. After the start of Russian invasion of Ukraine more people of different nationalities applied to join Georgian National Legion. The GNL has been seen multiple times in news reports and interviews and can be seen as one of the more known Volunteer battalions.
TheDzhokhar Dudayev Battalion, originally named the "Chechen battalion", was set up in March 2014 and is one of severalChechen volunteer armed formations fighting on the side of Ukraine. It was later named after Chechnya's first president and leaderDzhokhar Dudayev. The battalion has been under the command ofAdam Osmayev afterIsa Munayev waskilled in action during theBattle of Debaltseve.[29] The battalion is made up mostly of Chechen volunteers, many of whom fought in theFirst andSecond Chechen War. Members of the battalion view the war as part of a broader struggle against Russian imperialism and the Kadyrov regime.[30] The battalion specializes in counter-subversion.[31] Since the start of the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the battalion has participated in the defence of Kyiv and has taken part in numerous battles and offensives.[32][33] Since November 2022, the battalion is involved in theBattle of Bakhmut.[32]
TheSheikh Mansur Battalion is one of severalChechen volunteer armed formations fighting on the side of Ukraine. It is named after an 18th-century Chechen leader who fought against the Russian expansion into the Caucasus. Following its establishment in 2014, it has been involved in theDonbas war. It was reported to be defending the front line near Mariupol in 2015.[34] Despite its staunch pro-Ukrainian stance, the battalion suffered sanctions from the Ukrainian government (with some members being extradited to Russia), and as a result, the battalion was disbanded in September 2019; as one of the last units composed purely of volunteer soldiers.[35][36][20] However, during the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the battalion was reported to be active again.[37][38][39] Since then, the battalion has been fighting in numerous major battles such as theBattle of Kyiv,Battle of Mariupol andBattle of Sievierodonetsk. The battalion has been involved in intense battles in theBattle of Bakhmut andBattle of Soledar since November 2022.[40][41]
TheSeparate Special-Purpose Battalion (OBON) of the Ministry of Defense of theChechen Republic of Ichkeria is one of severalChechen volunteer armed formations fighting on the side of theArmed Forces of Ukraine. It is functioning as part of theForeign Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine. It was created byAkhmed Zakayev on July 31, 2022, on the basis of a Chechen formation that has been fighting on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.[42][43]
Tactical Group "Belarus" is a volunteer group of Belarusian nationals who were part of the Ukrainian volunteer battalions.
In 2022, the formerTerritorial defence battalions were reorganized into a more formal and structured independent branch of the armed forces known as the Territorial Defense Forces.[14] They serve as a spiritual successor of the volunteer battalions, allowing local civilian volunteers to join and do local territorial defense against an invasion.[14]
Following the2022 invasion of Ukraine byforces of the Russian Federation, Ukrainian presidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy urged foreign volunteers to travel to Ukrainian embassies across the world to join a new 'International Brigade' of theUkrainian armed forces.
Freedom of Russia Legion was formed following the 2022 invasion, which made up ofdefectors of the Russian armed forces. The legion also reportedly consists of volunteers from theRussian opposition.
In 2024, as part of an effort to recruit abroad citizens of Ukraine, the Polish and Ukrainian government established a scheme to enrollUkrainians in Poland into a new voluntary military formation called "Ukrainian Legion (Poland)", recruited and deployed by Ukraine, equipped and trained by Poland and Western partners.[44]Thousands of Ukrainians have reportedly registered already.[45]
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