| Country: | Russia |
| Details of Formation: | Young Russia was founded by a group of students and postgraduate students from the Bauman Moscow State Technical University (Wikipedia Young Russia). The formation has also been called a Kremlin response to the 2004 Orange Revolution in Ukraine. |
| Details of Termination: | -- |
| Purpose: | In their founding manifesto, Young Russia defines its purpose as acting against “Western expansionism, terrorism and corruption”. In 2009, its leader declared its new purpose as fighting religious sects and preventing the illegal sales of alcohol to minors (Wikipedia Young Russia). Their de-facto purpose for the Kremlin seems to be to intimidate political opposition through actions or demonstrations in order to prevent an Orange Revolution as in Ukraine, where youth groups had been a main driving force. |
| Organisation: | Young Russia’s leader is Maksim Mishchenko, who was involved in the founding of the group. Since 2007, he is MP of the State Duma for the ruling party United Russia and is member of the State Duma’s committee of youth affairs (Wikipedia Maksim Mishchenko). In 2007, Young Russia is reported to have links to the then deputy head of the presidential administration, Vladislav Surkov. |
| Weapons and Training: | The group is armed with metal rods. The deputy head of the presidential administration supported Young Russia’s project to recruit soccer fans that would train their activists in martial arts and crowd dispersal techniques. |
| Size: | -- |
| Reason for Membership: | Most members seem to join for their political commitment. |
| Treatment of Civilians: | Young Russia is active against political opposition and involved in beating them. |
| Other Information: | The group is sometimes also referred to as Rossiya Molodaya or Ru-Mol. |
| References: |
Wikipedia. “Maksim Mishchenko”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maksim_Mishchenko Wikipedia. “Young Russia (youth movement)”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Russia_(youth_movement) |