Azov Special Operations Regiment Becomes ‘Separate Assault Brigade’ With Ukrainian Army’s Ground Forces

Recruits of the Azov Ukrainian volunteer battalion take their oaths during a ceremony in Kyiv, on Aug. 14, 2015. (Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images)

The special operations forces of the “Azov” regiment have become the Third Separate Assault Brigade as part of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, according to officials.

Andriy Biletskyi, the founder and first commander of the unit, a controversial unit of the National Guard of Ukraine with alleged ties to neo-Nazis, confirmed the news on Telegram.

“The Azov Specops Regiment is now the Third Separate Assault Brigade as part of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Our combat path begins from the most difficult area, Bakhmut,” Biletskyi said, Ukrinform reports.

Biletskyi added that the “decisive battle in this war is yet to come.”

The city of Bakhmut is located in the eastern part of Donetsk Oblast and has become an important focal point of the war. Moscow believes the city to be crucial in its effort to seize all of Donetsk Oblast.

“That’s why the military command imposes on us a new responsibility. And therefore, all Russian freshly mobilized troops, convicts, Wagnerites, Solovyovs, and war reporters will have a lot to make up fables and legends about. We’re preparing plenty of surprises for them. The winter will definitely be hot,” Biletskyi wrote.

A Ukrainian tank moves near the front line in Bakhmut, Donetsk oblast, Ukraine, on Oct. 21, 2022. (Carl Court/Getty Images)

‘Constantly Improving Our Military Skills and Professionalism’

Along with his message on Telegram, the Azov Regiment, formerly known as the Azov Battalion, posted a video to YouTube confirming has officially become the Third Separate Assault Brigade.

“Our combat path began with a volunteer unit of territorial defense on February 24, 2022, created by veterans of the unit of the Azov regiment and representatives [of] Azov movement,” the video states, according to Censor.NET.

“In the bloody war with which the enemy came to our land, we are constantly improving our military skills and professionalism. At the same time, we are constantly growing in number, accepting and training highly motivated fighters in our ranks, ready for the difficult struggle for the independence of Ukraine,” the video added.

The Azov battalion began in 2014 as a volunteer paramilitary organization during the Donbass War in eastern Ukraine between pro-Russian separatists and pro-Ukrainian forces, following the overthrow of the pro-Russian Ukrainian government in the 2014 revolution.

It was formally incorporated as a regiment in the National Guard of Ukraine later that year.

However, opponents of the group, including Russia, have criticized its alleged association with neo-Nazis and its use of the wolfsangel symbol, which was also used by Nazi forces in Germany during World War II.

A woman holding a child walks past at as they take shelter amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine in a bunker said by Ukraine's Azov Battalion to be in Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, Ukraine in this screen grab taken from a handout video released on April 18, 2022. (Azov Battalion/Reuters)

Russia Designates Azov a Terrorist Group

Russia’s top court in August designated the regiment a terrorist group.

The Azov battalion has denied that it follows any political ideology and says it has distanced itself from the views of its nationalistic founder, Biletskyi.

Major Mykyta Nadtochiy is now the acting commander of the battalion.

The regiment was previously stationed near the besieged port city of Mariupol in the southern Donetsk Oblast, which saw intense fighting last year and ultimately began evacuating in May after being surrounded by Russian forces inside the Soviet-era Azovstal steel plant.

Azov’s latest announcement comes shortly after Facebook parent company Meta removed the Azov Regiment from its list of dangerous individuals and organizations, meaning members of the battalion can now create Facebook and Instagram accounts and post on the social media sites without breaking the tech giant’s content rules.

“The war in Ukraine has meant changing circumstances in many areas and it has become clear that the Azov Regiment does not meet our strict criteria for designation as a dangerous organization,” a company spokesperson told The Kyiv Independent.

However, the spokesperson noted that the company makes a distinction between Azov Regiment and Azov Movement and that other groups associated with the Azov Movement, including its founder Andriy Biletsky and his political party National Corps are still listed as dangerous individuals and organizations.

The Epoch Times has contacted Meta for comment.