The question of who such militias began to arise among many after the outbreak of armed confrontation in eastern Ukraine.
History reference
In the spring of 2014, southeastern regions of Ukraine were flooded with protests. The population of these territories refused to recognize the new government, which was formed after the events on the Maidan.
Dissatisfaction was expressed with the newly appointed governors, new "people's leaders" were elected in the regions.
April 6, 2014, having held another rally, the protesters began active actions. Some administrative buildings in the south-east of Ukraine were seized.
Activists seized firearms stored in the SBU of Lugansk and Donetsk.
The formation of the militia of the DNI
On April 11, 2014, armed self-defense units began to form, led by Igor Kakidzyanov.
During April, units of power structures in some settlements of the Donetsk region were captured.
04/16/2014 DNI militias made the first attempt to storm the Mariupol military unit. Soon, the Ukrainian command used aviation. The number of local skirmishes and attempts to attack military facilities increased.
During May, the seizure of police units and administration buildings continued.
During a large-scale attack in the direction of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, where the “Right Sector” was also involved, in addition to the Ukrainian army and internal affairs forces, the Kiev authorities had to learn firsthand who the militias were.
Despite the many-day attacks, supporters of federalization managed to hold out for quite some time, while three Ukrainian helicopters were shot down.
In mid-2014, a militia surrounded a group of Ukrainian troops trying to control the border with Russia. Three brigades were surrounded. In the hands of the militias was military equipment and artillery in an amount of at least 150 units.
The second major encirclement of Ukrainian troops was at the beginning of 2015 near Debaltseve.
On the composition of the militia
People’s militias use Russian tricolor, St. George ribbon and the flag of the DPR as symbols.
Reliable information on the exact structure and number of militia of the DPR has not been published. At the same time, who are the DNR militias can be understood by analyzing the composition of the three main groups of its members.
The first group consisted of former fighters of the power units of Ukraine, who were previously members of the "Golden Eagle" or special forces of the SBU, which has the appropriate training.
The second group included local residents who voluntarily joined the militia.
The level of their army training was the most varied.
The third conditional group included foreign volunteers and mercenaries.
Some military experts believe that in 2015 the militia moved to a brigade structure. There was a significant improvement in logistics, a unified command was created.
DPR militia units
The following units of the DPR troops are known, which appeared at different times in the media.
The defense of Slavyansk was handled by a group led by Strelkov, unofficially called the Slavic brigade. Her fighters also held defenses near Kramatorsk and nearby towns and villages. Subsequently, the team relocated to Donetsk.
The brigade "East" was commanded by Alexander Khodakovsky. Its place of origin was Donetsk, at first it was a battalion, which included former local Alpha and Golden Eagle, South Ossetian and Russian, including Chechen volunteers. The battalion included up to five hundred people.
The Oplot battalion was initially organized by a group of Kharkov anti-Maidan supporters. Then they moved to Donetsk. Until mid-2014, this unit was partially oriented towards fulfilling the functions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Major Alexander Zakharchenko commanded the division of the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The “Sparta” battalion was commanded by A. Pavlov, who became famous under the call sign “Motorola” - a militia who died as a result of a sabotage act in October of this year.
Battalion "Kalmius" organized by the miners. It was headed by Sergey Petrovsky. Since the fall of 2014, a brigade was organized from this mining battalion.
The first separate tactical battalion group “Somalia” was led by Lieutenant Colonel Mikhail Tolstykh, known by the call sign “Givi”. The militia managed to create a truly unique unit, which proved worthy in fighting.
On individual representatives of the militia
The question of who the militias are can be answered by the example of the aforementioned Arsen Sergeyevich Pavlov (callsign "Motorola").
He died in an explosion on 10/16/2016, made by a makeshift explosive device attached to an elevator cable. After his death in the DPR declared mourning for three days.
Over 50 thousand people came to say goodbye to him at the Donetsk Opera House.
Motorola, a militia who received the title of Hero of the DPR on February 21, 2015, arrived in Ukraine from Rostov in February 2014. First he entered the Kharkov "Oplot", then came under the command of Strelkov.
He had a certain combat experience, since earlier he served in the ranks of the Marine Corps, while more than a year and a half he served under a contract for long-term service. Twice traveled to Chechnya to participate in the counter-terrorist operation.
Over time, he led the detachment, which grew to the anti-tank company of the Volunteer Battalion.
Subsequently, the Sparta battalion arose from this unit.