Radical parties, irregular units Militant Ukrainian groups from the right-wing extremist milieu

After the war against Russia broke out in 2014, numerous militias were formed in Ukraine. Some of them were founded by members of radical right-wing organisations. The Kyiv-2, Sich, Karpatska Sich, Azov, DUK PS and UNSO militant groups were created by men who had already organised paramilitary exercises during the 1990s, who had worked for security guard firms, or who were involved in protection rackets. Most of them belonged to the "Maidan self-defence forces" during the protests in the winter of 2013/2014. Contrary to what is often claimed, however, the level of influence of these militant groups and their ideology is low. Since 2015, they have been almost entirely insignificant.