Spread of Immigrant Militia Units in Siberian Cities, Some with Help from Their Homelands, Worries Moscow Commentator

Paul Goble
    Staunton, Nov. 11 – In various cities in Siberia where there are significant diaspora populations, popular militias whose members include immigrants, some with Russian citizenship but others without, are forming to work with police to enforce laws and keep the peace between these communities and the Russian majority.
    This development, which has largely been taking place below Moscow’s radar screen, is now attracting more attention, Vladislav Maltsev says, because the Russian government itself is entering into agreements with the interior ministry of Kirghizstan to have officers from that Central Asian country come and work with these groups.
    That raises the possibility, the Zavtra commentator says, that something like extraterritorial status is emerging for the migrants, one resembling the foreign concessions in China in the 19th century which undermined that country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity (zavtra.ru/blogs/kirgizskie_gorodovie_i_natcional_nie_druzhini_uzhe_v_nashih_gorodah).
    Maltsev does not provide details on just how widespread either of these phenomena are, but his words will certainly feed into Russian fears that closed diasporas are taking control of the streets in some areas and threaten Russian statehood and the Russian people (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2024/10/closed-diasporas-are-seizing-power.html).
    Moreover, his report is likely to stimulate Russian groups to form their own militias and even Russian officials to accept them as valued aides, a development that will set the stage for more violence between the two groups (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2021/07/moscow-citys-use-of-chechen-shariat.html, windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2023/09/russian-veterans-returning-from-ukraine.html and windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2024/07/north-caucasus-officials-reliance-on.html).