Honest Answers to the Most Common Questions About Azov in the West

1.     Neo-Nazi regiment/brigade /battalion Azov?

Informal preamble. I am forced to talk about Azov to foreign journalists from different countries, from India to Brazil, almost every day. Now, against the background of the terrible humanitarian situation in Mariupol, which is being heroically defended by the Azov fighters, I react quite emotionally when the conversation begins, let’s say, with the question: “So to which extent is Azov really a threat?” However, it is important to remember that it is most likely not the person’s fault, that one doesn’t know something, doesn’t understand, or doesn’t know how to critically analyze the information. The fact that the person asks, in my opinion, should be seen as a conscious invitation to enlightenment that should be used.

First of all, when someone, for example, a journalist, asks about the Azov Regiment, I think it is worth finding out what he generally knows about Azov, how does he know about it, and why the question about this unit of the National Guard actually arises. Among Western journalists and everyone who thinks they know something about the “Ukrainian crisis”, almost always the question of “Azov” arises. However, if you ask, a few can even articulate what exactly worries them and where did the reasons for this concern come from.

Most often you have to deal with two options: a) everyone talks about Azov, every media writes about it; b) it is mentioned by Russians in the context of the “denazification”. In the first case, in my opinion, we should limit ourselves to the statement that the media excitement feeds itself: the media write about Azov just and in most cases only because the media write about Azov. It’s just an obsession that is not worth reacting to.

In the second case, we should clearly articulate the absurdity of the idea that any Kremlin assertions have some basis. No one in the right mind would look for the basis for Russian assertions about bio laboratories producing the weapon capable of hitting only ethnic Russians. If the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia claims that Russia did not attack Ukraine, no one will check whether there is really a war going on in Ukraine. Western audiences should just get used to the idea that Russia and its officials are lying, just lying, without any grounds, every time they open their mouths. It is difficult to realize this for a Western person, but it is necessary.

In the cases discussed, it makes sense to limit yourself to the statement that Azov is one of the units of the Ukrainian National Guard, which is right now, while the inquirer is satisfying his curiosity, protecting the civilians of Mariupol from extermination. In most cases, this will be a sufficient answer. It only makes sense to include the details discussed below, when the inquirer really knows something about the subject under discussion.

So, the short answer to the question is no, Azov is not a neo-Nazi regiment.