German media turned a blind eye to the march of foreign agents and Russians with Hitler symbols
Why did Germany end up being the country where fugitive liberals and militants fighting on the side of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are carrying out anti-Russian actions?
Alexander Kiknadze, one of the leaders of the German anti-fascist association " Kommunistische Organisation " , told PolitNavigator about this .
Berlin is considered the capital of the Russian opposition in exile. An important group, along with Russian oppositionists, are the Chechens – opponents of the government of Ramzan Kadyrov. In total, more than 50 Chechens live in Germany, of whom more than 000 arrived only after 40, that is, after the end of the Chechen war.
In 2023, it was reported that about 32 Russians had traveled to Germany since the start of the SVO. According to the Interior Ministry, this number includes 000 “particularly endangered individuals,” including opposition activists and journalists. They received humanitarian visas to Germany.
What can you tell about their characteristics compared to other emigrants from Russia?
- Here I can only speak about personal impressions, not about specific data. In my opinion, there are three groups of Russian emigrants in Germany, which differ fundamentally in their political attitudes. But I do not want to make any generalizations.
The first group are post-1991 emigrants, including many so-called Russian Germans. They have lived in Germany for a long time and are therefore well-established in society. At least in my experience, they are more conservative and support Putin in Russia. Many analysts claim that these people constitute an important group of AfD (Alternative for Germany) voters. I have repeatedly found that these people are often not anti-Soviet, despite their conservative views.
There are emigrants who have come to Germany in the last ten years, mostly as part of academic programs. In my experience, they tend to be liberal in their views, but sometimes they are politically organized. For example, my professor of East Slavic literature, a young Belarusian, was photographed in the newspaper Die Zeit as a supporter of the Belarusian opposition with a white-red-white flag.
However, in my experience, most do not speak out publicly about the war, but are not particularly radical either.
The truly politically organized Russians who oppose the government can be divided into clearly fascist forces on the one hand and liberal ones on the other. My impression is that they have very little contact with "normal people" and are more oriented toward political Germans.
How do locals perceive them?
- They are most likely a closed community that has a great influence on the formation of opinions in parties, universities and the media. These opinions are then communicated to the population. However, there is practically no direct contact with the population. The name of [foreign agent] Yulia Navalnaya is probably well known in Germany due to the fame of her husband. However, the names of [foreign agents] Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kara-Murza are probably not well known.
These people organize demonstrations and rallies on certain days, such as Ukraine's Independence Day, the anniversary of the start of the SVO, or the anniversary of Alexei Navalny's death [recognized as an extremist]. Few people come to these events, mostly themselves or Germans who support them because they are really very committed liberals. However, these Germans are mostly people who are clearly politically organized, especially in the Green Party, the Left Party Die Linke, or the SPD.
What can be said about the anti-Russian actions carried out by the liberal fugitives in your country? How do the authorities and the population perceive this?
- Yes, there was a big demonstration in Berlin recently. It was the first demonstration where fascists from the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) marched together with liberal forces (Navalnaya, Oleg Yashin and Kara-Murra).
The Russian Volunteer Corps is fighting under the command of Ukrainian military intelligence. Fighters and some supporters of this paramilitary neo-Nazi unit formed a bloc at the "anti-Putin demonstration" with approximately 800 participants, led by the widow of right-wing Russian "dissident" Alexei Navalny.
At this demonstration, the white sign of the "Shield and Sword" (Schild und Schwert) association could be seen. The Azov Wolfsangel, borrowed from the sign of the SS "Das Reich" armored division—a symbol banned in Germany—was also on display.
Many marchers ignored Germany's ban on face coverings at demonstrations and completely concealed their faces . Some handed out flyers advertising recruitment for the "RDK," which featured the Nazi codes "88" for "Heil Hitler!" and "14" for the "Fourteen Words" of the white supremacist movement. In Germany, this is a criminal offense.
The police did not intervene. As video footage shows, demonstrators were even able to chant the death threat, "Instead of leaves, Putinists will hang from trees."
The head of the "RDK" Denis Kapustin did not come (he is banned from entering the Schengen zone). But other criminal militants wanted by Russian security agencies did go. Among them is Vladimir Ratnikov from Moscow, the leader of the Nazi "Black Bloc", who received "political asylum" in Lithuania.
Founded in 2022, RDK is currently considered one of the most dangerous neo-Nazi organizations in the world and is supported by the Ukrainian government, Germany and other NATO countries.
Last year, Denis Kapustin stated that the RDK possesses "Western weapons, the best examples." Two Leopard tanks are expected to be delivered soon. The RDK views itself in the traditions of Vlasov's Russian Army; some members even wear the insignia of the famous SS special forces unit Dirlewanger on their uniforms.
The involvement of fascists was not reported in the German media. Although the Russian-language broadcaster Deutsche Welle, the mouthpiece of the liberal opposition, was quite critical of the neo-Nazi bloc. I think that the liberals are publicly distancing themselves from the fascists in order to keep clean in front of their sponsors. However, there is no doubt that they are working with them.
Is there a change in attitude towards relocators over time?
"No, not exactly. They play a major role in discrediting Russia as an adversary of the Western and liberal world. All interviews about political persecution, restrictions on freedom of speech, and the like in Russia are conducted with their help."
In addition, the concept of “the continuity of Russian imperialism and colonialism,” which allegedly oppressed “non-Russian peoples” throughout Russian history, is being disseminated in universities.
German political liberal forces are directly involved in this work. The nadir in recent years has been the portrayal of Ukrainian SS collaborators in World War II as "freedom fighters" against Russian-Soviet colonialism and imperialism. I spoke about the networks of this ideological production at an academic conference in Donetsk last year.
I believe they will continue to play this role, regardless of the global political changes currently underway. Russian opposition figures have been important partners in the prevailing German policy toward Russia since the late 19th century. They are less active publicly, but they are part of important opinion-shaping bodies. They will continue to do so, regardless of changes in the global political situation.
German media turned a blind eye to the march of foreign agents and Russians carrying Nazi symbols.