GenZedong

I went down a little rabbit-hole earlier regarding Neo-Nazi influence in Ukraine, especially with the Azov Batallion. I'm not going to add much commentary, just provide some articles and quotes I found enlightening.

I was looking through some Wikipedia articles on music genres, and stumbled across National Socialist black metal, which has an interesting line:

In 2012, the NSBM Asgardsrei festival was established in Moscow, Russia, and then in 2014 relocated to Kyiv, Ukraine, where it is closely linked to the activities of the Ukrainian nationalist network Azov Battalion and functions as an international hub for neo-Nazism and other far-right politics.

Following this to the Asgardsrei festival, where we get

The festival is strongly connected to Alexey Levkin of М8Л8ТХ, and his "Militant Zone"[^1] label, who act as organizers and originally founded the festival in Moscow in 2012. Levkin and the Militant Zone are heavily involved in the Ukrainian nationalist Azov Battalion and the paramilitary Russian Volunteer Corps.

I followed some of the sources from that page and came across several things I found very interesting.

A Black Metal Festival in Ukraine This Weekend Is the Neo-Nazi Networking Event of the Year. Vice. 2019.

Hundreds of far-right extremists will converge on Ukraine’s capital this weekend for a “militant black metal” music festival that experts say has become a networking hub in the international neo-Nazi scene. [...] According to Haaretz[^2], Asgardsrei was founded by Russian neo-Nazi Alexey Levkin, a far-right dissident who came to Ukraine in 2014 to support Azov, which has since actively forged links with like-minded groups elsewhere. Levkin describes himself as an ideologist “who gives lectures in culture, history, and contemporary political thought” to National Militia — the paramilitary street wing of the sprawling Azov movement, which also has a regiment incorporated into Ukraine’s national army, as well as its own political party, National Corps. [...] Meanwhile, Azov has pursued an outreach program to cultivate links with far-right groups internationally. Olena Semenyaka, international secretary for Azov’s political party who has strong ties to Levkin, traveled to meet contacts in Germany, Sweden, Italy, Croatia, and Portugal in the past year.[^3]

Europe's NSBM scene gathers in Kiev. Endstation Rechts. 2018.

The political arm of the notorious paramilitary Ukrainian "Azov" regiment acts as the mastermind behind the festival and conference.

A National Socialist black metal festival in Kiev is much more than just music. pov.international. 2019.

The Militant Zone is housed in the Kossack House, located close to Maidan Square, where the revolution broke out in 2014. The house is the center of the Azov Social Corps, a subdivision of the far-right National Corps party [...] The National Corps is the political arm of the Azov Movement, an umbrella organization based on the Azov Battalion , established as a paramilitary army unit in 2014, fighting Russian-backed separatists in the eastern part of the country, where the Ukrainian army lacked strength to defeat himself. In the same year, the unit was incorporated into the Ukrainian National Guard. The battalion was established by a well-known neo-Nazi, Andriy Biletsky, who is today the leader of the party. He managed to attract neo-Nazis to the army, which also had fighters from other countries in their units. [...] In 2018, the US Congress decided that Azov should not receive a share of the funds with which the Americans support the Ukrainian army, among other reasons, because Azov has expressed himself as anti-Semitic.

One thing that stood out to me is that several sources mention Nazis moving from Russia into Ukraine (an action this Neo-Nazi festival itself took as well). Another is the international networking and recruitment efforts of the Neo-Nazi scene in Ukraine. What surprised me as well was that the Neo-Nazi Azov Batallion was incorporated into the Ukrainian national army well after it was known they were Neo-Nazis. Moreover, there's seemingly no push-back or prohibition of not just the ideological recruitment, but the international involvement and gathering in Ukraine.

[^1]: ASGARDSREI V – NOKTURNAL MORTUM, PESTE NOIRE, M8L8TH, KRODA KIEV, (18.12.2016) festival home page showing Azov merch [^2]: Most neo-Nazi Music Festivals Are Closely Guarded Secrets — Not This One in Ukraine. Haaretz. 2019. [^3]: What the Hell Are Ukrainian Fascists Doing in the Hong Kong Protests?. Vice. 2019.