The court of the Russian Federation declared the Georgian Legion a terrorist organization and put it on the list of terrorist organizations, Russian media reports based on the press service of the Federal Security Service.
“Based on the evidence collected by FSB, the military court declared the paramilitary group Georgian National Legion as a terrorist organization. On the basis of this decision and the federal law on combating terrorism, the group was put on the unified federal list of organizations recognized as terrorist organizations in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation,” – the FSB said.
According to their information, the formation was created in 2014 under the patronage of the Main Intelligence Division of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, and currently its members participate in hostilities on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and also participate in the organization of subversive and terrorist acts on the territory of Russia.
FSB states that they continue to take measures “in order to identify and prevent threats from the members of the terrorist organization Georgian National Legion.
Georgian Legion became the 51st organization recognized as a terrorist in Russia. Before that, in December 2023, the Russian Volunteer Corps was declared a terrorist organization.
The Georgian National Legion is a military unit formed by mostly ethnic Georgian volunteers fighting on the side of Ukraine in the war in Donbas and the Russo-Ukrainian War. The unit was organized in 2014, and in 2016 it was made part of the Ukrainian Army, under the 25th Mechanized Infantry Battalion “Kyiv Rus”.
The unit was commanded by Mamuka Mamulashvili, a veteran Georgian officer.
The Georgian Legion was noted as being particularly good at recruiting Americans by Kacper Rekawek, an expert on foreign fighters in Ukraine; before the formation of the International Legion of Ukraine in 2022, most pro-Ukrainian foreign fighters served in the Georgian Legion.
As of June 2023, volunteers from 33 nationalities have joined the unit.
