The newspaper “Politico” reported that US authorities were collecting information about Americans traveling to Ukraine, fearing that there were supporters of far -right ideas, who might return to their country with war experience. .
Citing a document on March 7 from the customs and border control service, the newspaper reported that Ukrainian nationalist groups, including the “Azov” battalion, were actively recruiting white supremacists to join various volunteer battalion of neo-Nazis in the war against Russia.
Information from Customs and Border Control shows that before March 3, the Ukrainian Embassy in the US received more than 3,000 applications from Americans willing to go to Ukraine voluntarily. The newspaper pointed out that the document mentions 6 Americans planning to travel to Ukraine. Service personnel questioned 5 of them before flying from New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport and searched the bag of the sixth volunteer, some of which happened before Russia’s special military operation against Ukraine began.
One of the respondents admitted to being a former member of an extremist anti-government movement known as “Bugalu” (slang for civil war). Another became a former sailor, and from information on one of his “electronic devices” it became clear that he planned to join the Ukrainian national “Azov” battalion. Meanwhile, his friend, who is also a retired U.S. soldier, went to Ukraine on a different route the same day. The military equipment was found in their bags by customs and border control officers. The fourth American named in the document was a former member of the French Foreign Legion and also sought to join the fight against ISIS. According to service information, he planned to go to the Kyiv Sports Complex, which is a training base for those who want to join the “Azov” battalion. The document does not specify whether the two people in question came to Ukraine or whether the remaining two were related to the most right-wing organization.
At the end of that document is a section titled “Knowledge Gaps” that asks questions that CBP has not answered. One is about the skills that American volunteers in Ukraine have learned “that they can apply to US -based militias and nationalist groups.”
U.S. authorities have repeatedly urged their citizens to refrain from visiting Ukraine, including traveling there to participate in hostilities.
Source: TASS
Source: Arabic RT
