MOSCOW, October 1 (RAPSI) – State Duma lawmaker Mikhail Degtyaryov (LDPR) has requested that the head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, look into the alleged involvement of Ukrainian politicians in the creation of military camps and the recruitment of young Russians for revolts in Russia, Izvestia newspaper writes on Wednesday.
“Degtyaryov believes that the investigation should start with oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, who is financing the punitive Ukrainian battalions, the head of the ultra-nationalist Right Sector, Dmytro Yarosh, Donetsk Region Governor Serhiy Taruta and Batkivshchyna leader Yulia Tymoshenko,” the newspaper writes.
Izvestia cites the example of one Yulia Tolopa, 18, who has allegedly joined the Aydar battalion. The newspaper writes that before going to Ukraine, Tolopa, who is believed to be a resident of the Stavropol Territory in Russia, was a member of a rightwing movement in the territory, but there is no documentary evidence proving that she is a Russian national.
The newspaper writes that other radical-minded Russian citizens could have trained in National Guard camps and fought against the self-defense forces in southeast Ukraine.
According to Degtyaryov, the nonconformist Russians who trained in Ukrainian camps could subsequently form the militant core of anti-constitutional activity in Russia. He concludes that Ukrainian recruiters are planning an armed revolt in Russia.
The newspaper adds that Russia is not the only target of these Ukrainian nationalists who have established a recruitment camp in western Ukraine to train Belarusians who stand in opposition to Alexander Lukashenko’s regime.
Ihor Kolomoisky has been charged in Russia under the Criminal Code articles on “the masterminding of murder, the use of prohibited methods and means of warfare, abduction, and the hindering of the legitimate activities of journalists.” It is also believed that he is sponsoring the Right Sector and several armed groups that are fighting the anti-Maidan forces in eastern Ukraine.
Kolomoisky’s personal wealth is estimated by Forbes at $1.8 billion, which makes him the fourth richest man in Ukraine.