Tactical group "Belarus"

Tactical Group "Belarus" is a group of volunteers from Belarus who were involved in the Donbas war. They fought on the side of Ukraine, first as part of the Right Sector Ukrainian Volunteer Corps, and later as part of various formations of the Ukrainian volunteer battalions and the Armed Forces of Ukraine.[2]

Tactical group "Belarus"
Belarusian: Тактычная група «Беларусь»
Ukrainian: Тактична група «Білорусь»
Activesince June 2015
CountryUkraine
Allegiance Right Sector Ukrainian Volunteer Corps (2015)
Kastuś Kalinoŭski Battalion (2022)[1]
Sizeat least 300 people

History

Prerequisites

Belarusian volunteers had been involved in the war in the Donbas since the beginning of hostilities in the spring of 2014.[3] In the same year, a group of Belarusian volunteers created a detachment called the "Pahonia" detachment.[4] Belarusian volunteers took part in the Battle of Avdiivka in 2014.[5]

Creation and battle path

The Belarus Tactical Group was established on August 8, 2015, after negotiations with Belarusian activists and the leadership of the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps Right Sector.[6] Its fighters fought in the battles at Butivka mine, Pisky, Volnovakha, and Marinka.[5]

In mid-August 2015, near Volnovakha, the group fought a battle in which two volunteers, Vitaliy Tilizhenko and Ales Cherkashin, were killed.[7][8]

On March 9, 2022, during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Tactical group "Belarus" announced in its social networks that the Kastus Kalinouski Battalion had been formed, which was later transformed into a regiment.[1]

Personnel

The number of soldiers who served in the formation is unknown. The group includes ex-political prisoner Eduard Lobau, Belarusian opposition activist Yan Melnikov, as well as fighters with the nicknames "Warrior", "Bison" and "Tour".[8][9]

Persecution in Belarus

The law enforcement agencies of Belarus have repeatedly stated that citizens whose participation in the war in eastern Ukraine is proven will be punished under the "Mercenary" criminal article, the sanction of which can reach from 3 to 7 years in prison.[10]

In May 2016, Alina Fortuna, a fighter of the Belarus tactical group, was deported from Belarus.[11]

The page of the tactical group "Belarus" on Facebook and "VKontakte" is banned in Belarus.[12]

In September 2022, the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs recognized the Internet resources of the tactical group and other Belarusian military formations in Ukraine as an extremist group.[13]

Losses and commemoration

On March 28, 2016, a Monument to the Belarusians who died for Ukraine was unveiled in Kyiv. It lists the names of Mykhailo Zhyznevsky, who died during the Euromaidan events, as well as Ales Cherkashin and Vitaly Tilizhenko, two volunteers of the Belarus tactical group who were killed in action.[14]

In February 2017, the exhibition "Ukrainian East" opened at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War. The exposition also includes items used by fighters of the tactical group "Belarus" as well as a white-red-white flag, a bulletproof vest of Alexander Cherkashin and a helmet of Vitaly Tilizhenko.[15]

Honors

On September 4, 2015, a number of fighters of the tactical group "Belarus", in particular fighters with the nicknames "Doc", "Belarus" and "Lion" were awarded the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate Medal "For Sacrifice and Love for Ukraine". Cherkashin and Tilizhenko received these awards posthumously.[6]

Ales Cherkashin was awarded the Order of the People's Hero of Ukraine.[7]

In October 2016, a fighter with the nickname "Zubr" received the award "For the sacrifice of the Ukrainian people."[16]

See also

References
  1. Беларусы стварылі асобны батальён імя Кастуся Каліноўскага для абароны Кіева
  2. "Расея можа паўтарыць украінскі сцэнар у Беларусі". February 10, 2017.
  3. "Тактычная група «Беларусь» аб'яднае беларускіх дабраахвотнікаў ва Украіне". Наша Ніва.
  4. "Участь в АТО візьме добровольчий загін білорусів «Пагоня»". espreso.tv.
  5. "Ян Мелнікау: Без вільної України не буде вільної Білорусі". Archived from the original on 2018-11-18. Retrieved 2021-08-30.
  6. БІЛОРУСЬКІ ДОБРОВОЛЬЧІ ФОРМУВАННЯ У ХОДІ БОЙОВИХ ДІЙ НА СХОДІ УКРАЇНИ У 2014-2016 рр. (НА МАТЕРІАЛАХ НАЦІОНАЛЬНОГО МУЗЕЮ ІСТОРІЇ УКРАЇНИ)
  7. "Черкашин Олександр Миколайович - Книга пам′яті загиблих за Україну - Український меморіал". ukraine-memorial.org.
  8. "Білоруських добровольців АТО взяли до елітної частини української армії". Archived from the original on 2017-10-05. Retrieved 2021-08-30.
  9. "Беларускія добраахвотнікі на Данбасе будуць вучыцца ў амерыканцаў". naviny.belsat.eu.
  10. "МВД: Белорусов, которые едут воевать в Украину, ждет уголовная ответственность". Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-08-30.
  11. "Бійця тактичної групи "Білорусь", Аліну Фортуну - депортували з території сусідньої Білорусі" – via www.youtube.com.
  12. "Кніга памочніка Чэрчыля, манета Трэцяга Рэйху, украінскі магніцік і «Урок беларускай мовы». Што лічыцца экстрэмізмам у Беларусі?". naviny.belsat.eu.
  13. МВД признало экстремистскими формированиями ресурсы Полка Калиновского, телеграм-каналы «Движ» и «Баста!»
  14. "У Києві відкрили пам'ятник білорусам, загиблим на Майдані та в АТО". nv.ua.
  15. "У Нацыянальным музеі гісторыі Украіны паказваюць беларускія рэліквіі. Фота". naviny.belsat.eu.
  16. "Байца з тактычнай групы «Беларусь» узнагародзілі медалём «Брат за брата»". naviny.belsat.eu.
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