Alleged recruiter for Ukraine’s nationalist party to be handed over to Russian court

Russia’s Federal Investigative Committee has finished looking into the case of Russian citizen Alexander Razumov, who was suspected of recruiting people for a Ukrainian neo-Nazi organization and of “kindling hatred.” According the investigators, Razumov recruited for the Right Sector, an extreme right organization in Ukraine which has been recognized as an extremist group and banned in Russia.

According to the Investigative Committee, on August 29, 2014, Razumov met with two acquaintances in the town of Zelenograd. His acquaintances were police officers, and he allegedly tried to convince them to join the ranks of the Right Sector and to fight against the separatists in the east of Ukraine. The police officers declined.

The Investigative Committee has not disclosed the circumstances of Razumov’s arrest.

Additionally, on his profile on the social media network Vkontakte, Razumov posted various materials meant to inspire hatred and hostility and offend groups of people on the basis of their ethnicity.

Alexander Razumov is one of 65 people who are under investigation in Russia in connection with the conflict in the east of Ukraine. The list of 65 was published by Russian newspaper Kommersant in January 2015.

In November 2014, the Supreme Court of Russia ruled that the Ukrainian far right nationalist party Right Sector is an extremist organization, and all activities relating to this group were banned in Russia.