Little green men (2014 Crimean crisis)

Armed men without insignia (so-called "little green men") in Simferopol Airport, 28 February 2014. The AK-74 on the right does not have a magazine inserted

"Little green men" armed with AK-74s blockading Perevalne military base, 25 kilometres south of Simferopol, 9 March 2014

"Little green men" armed with PK machine guns outside the parliament in Simferopol, 14 March 2014

Little green men (Russian: зелёные человечки, Ukrainian: зелені чоловічки) is a colloquial expression referring to masked unmarked soldiers in green army uniforms wielding Russian military weapons and equipment within Ukraine. It was first used during the 2014 Crimean crisis, when said soldiers occupied and blockaded the Simferopol International Airport, most military bases in Crimea^[1] and the parliament in Simferopol.

Retired Russian Admiral Igor Kasatonov has revealed that the little green men belonged to the army Spetsnaz and said that according to his information the Russian troop deployment in Crimea included six helicopter landings and three landings of IL-76 with 500 people.^[2]

In Russia the unknown soldiers were later called "polite people" (Russian: вежливые люди, Ukrainian: ввічливі люди).^[3][4][5][6]

Weapons and equipment analysis

In March 2014 the Finnish magazine Suomen Sotilas (Soldier of Finland) published an analysis of the weapons and equipment seen on photos of "little green men".

The article points to a number of weapons and pieces of equipment that it asserts is issued only to armed forces in the Russian Federation:

• New EMR camouflage combat uniforms
• New 6Sh112 tactical vest
• New 6B27 composite helmet
• New 7.62 mm PKP machine guns
• 6B26 composite helmets (used only by airborne troops of the Russian Federation)
• 6Sh92-5 tactical vest (used only by airborne troops of the Russian Federation)
• Gorka-3 combat uniform (used only by Russian special forces and mountain troops)
• Smersh AK/VOG tactical vest (used only by Russian special forces)

The article goes on to conclude that with a very high probability these troops are the 45th Guards Separate Reconnaissance Regiment of VDV, Kubinka, Moscow.^[7]

Official Russian reaction

At first President of Russia Vladimir Putin stated that the men in green were not part of Russian Armed Forces, but groups of local militia who had obtained their weapons from Ukrainians.^[8] The SACEUR of NATO Allied Command Operations General Philip Breedlove on the other hand asserted that these "green men" were in fact Russian troops.^[9]

In March 2014 Putin continued to back the Russian viewpoint,^[10][11] stating "the heavily armed, tightly coordinated groups who took over Crimea's airports and ports at the start of the incursion – they were merely spontaneous "self-defence groups" who may have acquired their Russian-looking uniforms from local [military] shops (voyentorg)".^[12][13] According to the Ukrainian Gun Owners Association, Ukrainian law does not allow the selling or carrying of firearms other than for hunting.^[14]

On 17 April president Putin admitted for the first time publicly that Russian special forces were involved in the events of Crimea, for the purposes of protecting local people and creating conditions for a referendum.^{[15][16][17][18][19][20]} Later he admitted that Russian Armed Forces had blocked Ukrainian Armed Forces in Crimea during the events.^[21]

Russian Minister of Defence Sergey Shoygu answered on the question about the presence of Russian troops in Crimea that "Regarding the statements about use of Russian special forces in Ukrainian events, I can only say one thing – it's hard to search for a black cat in a dark room, especially if it's not there," and added cryptically that searching for the cat would be "stupid" if the cat is "intelligent, brave, and polite",^[3][22] from where the expression "polite men" came into being too.

Reappearance in Donbass

During the War in Donbass a Reuters correspondent reported from a settlement of Kolosky in Donetsk Oblast on 26 August 2014 that dozens of heavily-armed strangers with Russian accents have appeared at the weekend and set up a road block (about 10 kilometres from the Russian border).^[23][24]

The men had white arm bands, the same identifying mark that was worn by 10 men captured a few kilometers (miles) away by Ukrainian forces and who, in a video released on Tuesday (26 August 2014), said they were Russian paratroopers.^[23] A report by the BBC referred to the unmarked Russian forces in the Donbass as a "Ghost Army".^[25]

On 13 January 2015 Ukrainian news outlet censor.net reported of Russian special forces in Luhansk along with footage of eight unmarked soldiers in green army uniforms patrolling a street there with several of them carrying an AS Val, a weapon exclusive to the Russian Armed Forces.^[26]

International reactions

• The Ukrayinska Pravda reported that the Minister of Defense of Latvia Raimonds Vējonis has promised to shoot the little green men if they won't act peacefully.^[27]
• On February 1, 2015, a doctrine came into effect stating "sending of armed groups, irregular forces, or mercenary groups who use arms against Belarus will trigger a declaration of war"^[28] and "concentration of foreign forces along the Belarusian border" will result in invoking martial law.^[29]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Unmarked soldiers during the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation.

• Ash, Lucy (29 January 2015). "How Russia outfoxes its enemies". BBC News Online. Retrieved 7 April 2015.