By Christopher Buhl
This motorcycle excursion has now become a tradition…
As in previous years, a group of several hundred motorcycle rockers left Moscow on Saturday for a joint tour. Their destination: Berlin.
The Russian rockers are already notorious in the capital: they are the “night wolves”, who are close to the Kremlin ruler and warmonger Vladimir Putin (70) and vehemently support the dictator’s policies.
► During their tour, they ride the Russian war propaganda on their motorcycles, as photos show: Not only Russian and Soviet flags were attached to the bikes – also the letter Z, which the Kremlin officially described as a “special military operation” war in Ukraine symbolizes. In addition, the ride bears the martial name “The Routes of Victory”.
The sinister entourage is led by Alexander Saldostanov, the boss and founder of the “Night Wolves”, who describes himself as a “friend” of Putin. Zaldostanov is under Western sanctions for his support for Russia’s illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014.
The trip is initially to Volgograd – the former Stalingrad – lead. The Red Army’s victory over Hitler’s Wehrmacht in the almost six-month battle there (1942-1943) marked a turning point in the Soviet Union’s struggle against Nazi Germany in World War II. February 2, in the presence of Putin in Volgograd, marked the 80th anniversary of this victory has been committed.
Afterwards, Putin’s rockers want to go to the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, where the participants want the organizers to distribute humanitarian aid to civilians and Russian soldiers. Last September, Moscow declared Donetsk and three other Ukrainian regions annexed. However, the four regions are only partially controlled by Russia.
With the arrival in Berlin on May 9, the Russian anniversary of the end of the world war is to be celebrated. In Germany and other European countries, this anniversary is already celebrated on May 8th.
Not a harmless motorcycle club
Last year, the Arrival of the Putin rockers for a large police presence. Around 150 motorcycles and cars thundered through Berlin. Among other things, the rockers gathered at the Soviet memorial in Treptower Park and later met for a wreath-laying ceremony in the Tiergarten.
An occurrence that could only be sparsely prevented by imposed entry bans: Many of the night wolves live all over Germany. The group, consisting of more than 5000 members and a good 50 sub-groups, is also increasingly present outside of Russia.
The fact that the “Night Wolves” are not just a harmless motorcycle club is shown by their close involvement with Russia’s power center in the Kremlin.
Monika Richter, an expert on Kremlin activities in Europe from the Czech think tank European Values, said of the association in 2018: “You have a symbiotic relationship with the Kremlin, built on political support in return for financial support, status and other benefits. “
The “Night Wolves” were founded in 1989 shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the past, delegations from the club have repeatedly left Moscow for Berlin to celebrate the Red Army’s victory over Nazi Germany.