Right Sector

Right Sector
Пра́вий се́ктор
LeaderAndriy Tarasenko[1]
FounderDmytro Yarosh
FoundedNovember 2013
Registered 22 May 2014
Merger ofTryzub, UNA–UNSO, and Sich
Former constituents:
Social-National Assembly (left in 2014), White Hammer (expelled in 2014), and C14 (left in 2014)
HeadquartersKyiv, Ukraine
ParamilitaryUkrainian Volunteer Corps (2014–2022)[2][3][4])
Membership10,000
IdeologyUkrainian nationalism
Ultranationalism[5][6]
Revolutionary nationalism
Anti-Russian sentiment[7]
Anti-communism
Religious conservatism
Hard Euroscepticism[8]
Political positionRight-wing[9] to far-right[6][10]
Colors   Red, Black
Slogan"God! Ukraine! Freedom!"[11]
Designated as terror group by Russia
Verkhovna Rada[6]
0 / 450
Regions (2015)[12]
2 / 158,399
Party flag
Website
pravyysektor.info
Part of a series on
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Inactive or defunct

Right Sector (Ukrainian: Пра́вий се́ктор, romanized: Pravyi sektor) is a loosely defined coalition of right-wing to far-right[13] Ukrainian nationalist organizations.[6][14] It originated in November 2013 as a right-wing, paramilitary confederation of several ultranationalist organizations at the Euromaidan revolt in Kyiv,[9] where its street fighters participated in clashes with riot police.[15][16] The coalition became a political party on 22 March 2014, at which time it claimed to have roughly 10,000 members.[17][18] Founding groups included the Trident (Tryzub), led by Dmytro Yarosh and Andriy Tarasenko [uk], and the Ukrainian National Assembly–Ukrainian National Self-Defense (UNA–UNSO), a political and paramilitary organization.[19][20][21] Other founding groups included the Social-National Assembly,[22] and its Patriot of Ukraine paramilitary wing, White Hammer, and the Sich Battalion. White Hammer was expelled in March 2014,[23] and Patriot of Ukraine left the organization, along with many UNA–UNSO members, in the following months.[24]

Right Sector has been described as a right-wing[9][25] or far right[10] nationalist[7][26][27] political party and movement.[28][29][30] Right Sector was the second-most mentioned political group in Russian media during the first half of 2014, and Russian state TV depicted it as neo-Nazi.[10][31] In March 2014, Associated Press declared that it has found no evidence that the group had committed hate crimes.[27]

In the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Yarosh won a parliament seat as a Right Sector candidate by winning a single-member district with 29.8% of the votes.[32] Right Sector spokesperson Boryslav Bereza also won a seat as an independent candidate and district with 29.4% of the votes.[33] In the 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Right Sector took part on a united radical right nationwide-party list with the Governmental Initiative of Yarosh, National Corps, and Svoboda,[34] winning no seats.[35]

The Right Sector fought in the Donbas war with its own paramilitary wing, the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps.[36] In April 2015, Yarosh was appointed an advisor to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.[37] In November, Yarosh formally stepped down as the group's leader.[38] In December, he announced that he and his team would be withdrawing from the group entirely, declaring that Right Sector had fulfilled its purpose "as a revolutionary structure" and was no longer needed. He stated that he and his faction were against pseudo-revolutionary activity that threatens the state, fringe radicalism, and were against violent revolts against the government. In a statement issued in response to Yarosh's departure, Right Sector said the schism was due to its continuing a "revolutionary path".[39][40] The departure of Yarosh resulted in at least 20% of Right Sector members leaving with him,[41] together with three battalions of the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps to form a new paramilitary group named Ukrainian Volunteer Army.[42] In February 2016, Yarosh started a new organisation called the Governmental Initiative of Yarosh.[43] Since 19 March 2016, Tarasenko has been the new chairman of Right Sector.[1]

In November 2022, the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps was reformed as the 67th Separate Mechanized Brigade and became part of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.[2][3][4] In 2024, the 67th Brigade was disbanded and its members transferred to other brigades of the Ground Forces, due alleged preferential treatment of Right Sector members, which led to repeated losses in Battle of Chasiv Yar.[44]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference 19316rsnc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Profile: Ukraine's ultra-nationalist Right Sector". BBC. 28 April 2014. Archived from the original on 20 February 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  6. ^ a b c d Nordsieck, Wolfram (2014). "Ukraine". Parties and Elections in Europe. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  7. ^ a b Higgins, Andrew (12 April 2014). "Mystery surrounds death of fiery Ukrainian activist". The New York Times. p. A4. Archived from the original on 15 September 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2017. Mr. Muzychko — a militant activist in the nationalist group Right Sector... Right Sector, with its pugnacious anti-Russian nationalism and celebration of long-dead Ukrainians who collaborated with the Nazis against the Soviets in World War II... Right Sector, a coalition of once-fringe Ukrainian nationalist groups...
  8. ^ "Who are Ukrainian Nationalists, and How Do They Differ?". ukraineworld.org. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  9. ^ a b c "How did Odessa's fire happen?". BBC News. 4 May 2014. Archived from the original on 11 September 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2018. Hardline fans – known as 'ultras' – of both sides agreed to hold a joint march to support a united Ukraine.… Some were veteran supporters of Kiev's Maidan protest movement – the Maidan Self Defence Forces – and/or part of the right-wing Pravy Sektor (Rights Sector).
  10. ^ a b c Kozlowska, Hanna (2 June 2014). "The Fascists are coming, the Fascists are coming!". Foreign Policy. Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on 27 November 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2017. Experts agree that the group owes its popularity to Russian propaganda ... painting [it] as a powerful neo-Nazi force determined to take over Ukraine. According to a survey by an online database of Russian media sources, Right Sector was the second-most mentioned political group in Russian mass media in 2014 ... .
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference ideology was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Центральна виборча комісія України – відображення ІАС "Місцеві вибори 2015" [Central Election Commission of Ukraine – AIS display "Local Elections 2015"]. Central Election Commission of Ukraine (in Ukrainian). November 2015. Archived from the original on 13 November 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  13. ^ "Ukraine paramilitary group forms political party". Agence France-Presse. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 5 April 2014. A Ukrainian far-right paramilitary group … said Saturday it had formed a political party.… The Pravy Sektor party will absorb other already registered Ukrainian nationalist formations including UNA-UNSO and Trizub (Trident).
  14. ^ Kramer, Andrew (12 March 2014). "A far-right leader is front and center in Kiev". The New York Times. p. A8. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2017. Yarosh's bid for office, political commentators here say, is best understood as the latest maneuver in the ceaseless churn and infighting among the leadership of western Ukrainian nationalist groups — White Hammer, Patriots of Ukraine and the Trident of Stepan Bandera….
  15. ^ Shuster, Simon (21 February 2014). "Ukraine parliament's deal leads to an uneasy peace". Time. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2014. Troops from Pravy Sektor then went on a reconnaissance mission ... looking for things to reinforce their barricades ... . One ... still wore a green army helmet and a policeman's baton stuck into her backpack ... . 'I didn't get into this for politics,' she said. 'I'm a radical. I joined up to fight.'
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference timeshuster was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ McCoy, Terrence (26 March 2014). "Ultranationalist's killing underscores Ukraine's ugly divisions". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 17 November 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2017. Right Sector ... boasts between 5,000 and 10,000 members ... .
  18. ^ Nemtsova, Anna (19 March 2014). "Yarosh: Russians, rise up against Putin!". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 26 March 2014. Yarosh: 'I cannot give you the exact number, as our structure and divisions are constantly growing all over Ukraine, but more than 10,000 people for sure. .... We received some U.S. dollars from the Ukrainian diaspora.'
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBCRSSpPr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference db1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ (in Russian)Behind the scenes of Right Sector Archived 6 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Ukrayinska Pravda (1 April 2014)
  22. ^ Brayman, Lolita (28 February 2014). "Ukrainian nationalists strive to shake off allegations of anti-Semitism". Haaretz. Retrieved 12 May 2014. Some Pravy Sektor protesters on the Maidan sported yellow armbands with the wolf hook symbol revealing their specific political party affiliation—that of the Social National Assembly (SNA), a largely Kiev-based neo-Nazi organization. Other more openly anti-Semitic parties are White Hammer and C14, the neo-Nazi youth wing of the Svoboda party.
  23. ^ Right Sector Political Council (6 March 2014). "Official statement by Right Sector". PravyySektor.info (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2014. For marginal actions that defame the Right Sector movement and for breach of discipline, [White Hammer] is removed from our organization. ... Our actions must be coordinated and consistent.
  24. ^ Shekhovtsov, Anton (May 2015). -Wilson, Andrew (ed.). "The spectre of Ukrainian 'fascism': Information wars, political manipulation, and reality". What Does Ukraine Think?. European Council on Foreign Relations. p. 85. Archived from the original on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  25. ^ "Commentary: Ukraine's neo-Nazi problem". Reuters. 19 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  26. ^ "Ukraine unrest: Russian outrage at fatal Sloviansk shooting". BBC News. 20 April 2014. Archived from the original on 21 June 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2018. At least three people were reported killed in a gun attack on a checkpoint manned by pro-Russian activists ... . The Russian foreign ministry said ... Right Sector was behind the attack. ... Ukraine's National Security Council ... said there were indications that it was 'an argument between local criminal groups'.
  27. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference danilova was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  28. ^ "Neo-Nazi threat in new Ukraine: NEWSNIGHT". BBC Newsnight. 1 March 2014. Archived from the original on 8 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021 – via YouTube.
  29. ^ Shuster, Simon (6 March 2014). "Putin says Ukraine's revolutionaries are anti-Semites. Is he right?". Time. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 9 April 2014. The uprising … involved a radical right-wing group called Pravy Sektor, a coalition of militant ultra-nationalists ... . Their leader ... has been offered senior posts in Ukraine's security services ... .
  30. ^ Whalen, Jeanne (25 March 2014). "Prominent Ukraine nationalist killed during police operation". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2017. Russia's state-controlled media outlets have focused particular attention on Mr. Muzychko and one other activist from a far-right group called Pravy Sektor.
  31. ^ "Ukraine conflict: Turning up the TV heat". BBC News. 10 August 2014. Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2018. More emotive is the use of the words 'fascist' and 'Nazi' in many Russian TV reports … in several contexts, [which include] portraying the far-right Right Sector as Ukraine's real driving political force….
  32. ^ Cite error: The named reference resultsOkurs14 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  33. ^ Кандидати на мажоритарних округах: Одномандатный избирательный округ № 213 [Candidates for single-mandate constituencies: single-mandate constituency № 213] (in Ukrainian). RBK Ukraine. 25 October 2014. Archived from the original on 9 December 2014., RBK Ukraine
    (in Ukrainian) Boryslav Bereza very short bio Archived 9 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, RBK Ukraine
    Video of first brawl in Verkhovna Rada becomes a YouTube hit Archived 6 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Kyiv Post (5 December 2014)
  34. ^ Cite error: The named reference m.glavcom.ua600508 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  35. ^ Cite error: The named reference SvMPformer2748306 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  36. ^ "Загальні положення про Добровольчий Український Корпус "Правий сектор" | Офіційний сайт НВР "Правий сектор". 12 January 2018. Archived from the original on 12 January 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  37. ^ "Defense Ministry: Yarosh to be Armed Forces Commander in Chief's advisor". Interfax-Ukraine. 6 April 2015. Archived from the original on 10 April 2015. Retrieved 10 April 2015. Ukrainian General Staff Chief Viktor Muzhenko has agreed to appoint Dmytro Yarosh, the leader of Right Sector, as an advisor to the Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander in Chief, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on April 5 evening.
  38. ^ Cite error: The named reference jlasrsB was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  39. ^ "Новини". Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  40. ^ "Loading..." ps-zahid.info. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  41. ^ "Yarosh launches a new movement, leaves Right Sector – Feb. 22, 2016". 22 February 2016. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  42. ^ ""Червень" (Андрій Гергерт): "Ми вільні. Бачимо ворога – вбиваємо"". LB.ua. August 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
  43. ^ "Ukraine's Political Volatility Extends Beyond Kiev". Stratfor. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  44. ^ "Changes await Right Sector's 67th Brigade after losing positions in Chasiv Yar". Ukrainska Pravda. 14 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.