‘We are obliged to end the war’: A new Russian unit fights for Ukraine
Al Jazeera
The Siberian Battalion features a diverse set of fighters, from a former fitness instructor to a Muslim convert.
Kyiv, Ukraine – When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, 31-year-old Johnny, a fitness instructor from St Petersburg, set himself a goal.
He wanted to overthrow Vladimir Putin’s administration.
In fact, he would have liked to kill the Russian president with his own hands, he told Al Jazeera in a cafe at a remote petrol station on the outskirts of Ukraine’s capital.
In October, Johnny joined other Russians fighting for Ukraine and against their homeland as part of the Siberian Battalion, a unit formed last summer by the Civic Council, a Russian opposition group based in Poland.
“We want to democratise Russia. And it won’t be possible in the current state. Russia must fall apart into smaller pieces. I don’t care if it’s going to be small like Belgium. … Places like Yakutia and Chechnya and other regions should be able to secede if they choose to,” Johnny said.
