Head of Russian Region Bordering Ukraine wants to Raise Defense Forces but Moscow Says Any Formed There Can’t be Armed

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Dec. 9 – Fearful that the fighting in Ukraine will spill over into the Russian Federation, Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Belgorod Oblast which lies on the border, has announced plans to form local military formations to defend his people against any threat from outside.

            But as the Moscow newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets archly notes, “the powers don’t like competition,” and immediately after Gladkov’s announcement, a senior Duma deputy said that any such units could not be armed (mk.ru/politics/2022/12/09/pogranichnye-rayony-rossii-budut-zashhishhat-bezoruzhnye-batalony.html).

            Andrey Kartapolov, head of the Duma’s defense committee, said that any Belgorod units would not be part of the Russian armed services and could not bear arms. Just how they will defend Belgorod remains to be seen, and just how Belgorod residents will react to a declaration from Moscow about what the center cares most about.

            In reporting this, MK journalist Dmitry Popov observes that Gladkov’s idea represents “a useful initiative from below” given that it is now obvious that the border regions of Russia must be defended. But Moscow won’t allow them to do so on their own, apparently fearful that such actions would limit the center’s power.