Militant nationalists in uniform are patrolling the streets of Murmansk

Hundreds of people were last week gathering in downtown Murmansk in connection with the Maslenitsa Festival. Police officers were well represented at the event.

But they were not the only guards in uniform.

On site were also representatives of Russkaya Obshchina, the far-right organisation that is known for its extreme nationalistic and xenophobic positions. 

"We provided security to the public events organised in connection with Maslenitsa," the organisation reports.

"Thanks to the smooth operations of the militia members, the festival events proceeded without any serious incidents. We are proud that we could contribute to the security and well-being of the population," it writes on its social media page

It was not the first time that militants from the Russkaya Obshchina were taking on law enforcement responsibilities in Murmansk.

In February this year, the local branch of Russkaya Obshchina said it cooperated with police in the detention of a criminal gang leader. The reported criminal is a foreign national and described as chief of a "black Mercedes gang." The man will be expelled from Russia in the near future, Russkaya Obshchina says.

Like its sister organisations across Russia, the Russkaya Obshchina in Murmansk is actively supporting the war of aggression against Ukraine. Pro-war events and activities are organised along with collection of equipment for the warriors fighting on occupied land.

The organisation portrays itself as a parallel structure in local management affairs. "The joint efforts of our activists can significantly improve quality of life and help solve local problems," it argues.

The Russkaya Obshchina was established in 2020 by anti-abortion activist Yevgeny Chesnokov. Co-founders were the journalists Andrei Tkachuk and Andrei Afanasev. The latter is an employee of the Russian Orthodox TV channels SPAS and Tsargrad and has spent much of the past three years on occupied land as war propagandist. He is closely cooperating with the Russian Orthodox Church. 

The organisation today has regional units across all of Russia.

In its Annual Meeting in February this year, the Russkaya Obshchina officially announced that it is establishing its own armed unit. Head of the unit is Stanislav Orlov, the commander of the Russian 88th Special Operations Brigade, also known as the "Espaniol."

Orlov is wanted by Ukraine. He is described as a war criminal and terrorist by the Evocation Project. Together with a group of mercenaries working for the Russian state, he is believed to have been instrumental in the failed coup attempt in Montenegro in 2016. Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, he has built a force of Russian extremists and mercenaries on occupied land.

Among the 1,200 people that attended the annual meeting of Russkaya Obshchina were a big number of politicians with extreme nationalist views. In the hall was Sergei Mikheyev, the propagandists and leading representative of the political party Just Russia, as well as members of the State Duma Nikolai Nikolayev and Mikhail Matveev.

In the hall was also a major group of prelates from the Russian Orthodox Church, among them Archbishop Savva of Zelenograd.

The actual name of Savva is Sergei Andreevich Tutunov. He was born in France in a family of Russian emigrants. He today has several leading roles in the Moscow Patriarchy and is close to Patriarch Kirill. 

The churchman, who is described as 'the most radical prelate in the Russian Orthodox Church,' is a staunch supporter of the war of aggression against Ukraine. He has repeatedly emphasised that all participants in the onslaught will become martyrs and "come straight to paradise."

Ukrainian authorities have reportedly called for international sanctions against Archbishop Savva because of his aggressive war propaganda.