The Euromaidan protests, the annexation of Crimea, and the secession of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions between late 2013 and early 2014 sparked unrest not only in Ukraine but also among the Chechen diaspora and veterans of the Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI) in exile. For many Chechens, Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine evoked painful memories of their own nation’s occupation and war. A sense of historical solidarity with Ukraine, dating back to the participation of Ukrainian volunteers in the First Russo-Chechen War (1994–1996), reinforced the idea that the Chechens should join Ukraine’s struggle.
Isa Munayev
This conviction was embodied by Brigadier General Isa Munayev, one of the last high-ranking Ichkerian officers still alive and active in exile. Munayev (born on 20 December, 1966 in the village Alkhan-Kala), Veteran of the War in Afghanistan, had held key positions during the First and Second Chechen Wars, including Military Commissar of Zavodskoy District in Grozny, Head of the State Security Ministry’s Zavodskoy office (1998–1999), and Commander of the Grozny Garrison during the Russian assault in 1999, then Commander of the South-Western Front (from 2001). A fierce fighter, he led sabotage operations in Grozny against Russian and collaborationist forces until 2006, when he was seriously wounded and evacuated to Denmark.
According to the manifest valor and courage in the defense of their homeland Isa Munayev was awarded state awards of Chechen Republic of Ichkeria: the Order of “Honor of the Nation” (chech. Orden «Qoman Sij»), the Order “Hero of the Nation” (chech. Orden «Qoman Turpal»), Order “Defender of Motherland” (chech. Orden «Daymexkan Biaxuo») and the medal “Defender of Grozny” (chech. Medalj «Grozni Galin Bjaxuo»
Known for his stern demeanor, Mayrbek Vatchagaev, former press secretary to President Aslan Maskhadov, once recalled: “He was always tense, and it was clear you shouldn’t joke with him. I think he was the only man even Arbi Baraev feared—they lived in the same village, and Baraev managed to never run into him.”
In Denmark, Munayev led the Free Caucasus movement, advocating for a confederation of free Caucasian states under a vision once promoted by Dzhokhar Dudayev—the “Caucasian Home.” In 2014, as war broke out in Ukraine, he announced the formation of a volunteer battalion named after Dudayev. In an October 2014 press conference, he declared:
“Twenty-three years ago, Dzhokhar Dudayev warned the Ukrainian and Georgian people that Russian aggression was coming. His prediction came true. We knew they would attack Ukraine and Georgia. This fight is for the freedom of many peoples—Poles, Slovaks, Czechs, and the Baltics. They are next. Russian troops must be stopped now.”
Call to Arms
In March 2014, in connection with the events in the Independence Square in Kyiv, the Revolution of Dignity and the occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea by the Russian Federation, Isa Munayev, who was currently in Denmark, made a decision to establish an international peacekeeping battalion named after Dzhokhar Dudayev, to which includes not only Chechen fighters, but also volunteers from many European countries.
The first unit within the battalion was named the Sasha Bilyi Company, honoring the Ukrainian volunteer who fought alongside Chechens in the 1990s and was killed in a shootout in 2014. The second company was named after Khamzat Gelayev. Within months, the battalion, referred to as a “Peacekeeping Unit,” completed its ranks and formed its general staff. Munayev took command; Isa Sadigov, a former Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Defense (then exiled in Norway), became Chief of Staff; and Ruslan Eltaev, a veteran of both Chechen wars, served as Deputy Chief of Staff.
The rapid influx of volunteers led Free Caucasus to organize a second battalion, the Sheikh Mansur Battalion, named after the legendary Chechen leader of the 18th century. Its command was given to Muslim Cheberloevsky.
Isa Munayev and Muslim Cheberloevsky in Ukraine
Combat Deployment in Donbas
After training at the Cherkasskoye military base (Dnipropetrovsk region), the Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion deployed to the Donbas, where it took part in two of the war’s most brutal battles: Ilovaisk and Debaltseve. Composed of fighters from across the Caucasus—Chechens, Ingush, Dagestanis—as well as Ukrainians, Azerbaijanis, and Crimean Tatars, the battalion applied tactics honed in the Chechen wars to the urban and trench warfare of eastern Ukraine.
During the Ilovaisk encirclement in August 2014, the battalion was among the Ukrainian units that suffered heavy losses when promised Russian “humanitarian corridors” turned into death traps. As Munayev noted:
“If the Russians offer a corridor, it’s only so they can shell it.”
Isa Munayev press conference in Kiyv, with Amina Okueva
The battalion fought continuously until early 2015. On February 1, 2015, a group of fighters of the international peacekeeping battalion named after Dzhokhar Dudayev under the command of Isa Munayev performed a combat mission to destroy the heavy military equipment of the enemy in the area of fighting for the city of Debaltsevo of the Donetsk region. After a successful accomplishment of the task, namely the destruction of heavy military equipment and the live force of the enemy, the group made a march-throw to change the position in the district of the town Chernukhine, Popasnyansky district, Luhansk region, which was hit by mortar shelling. As a result of the bombing, Isa Munayev was killed as a result of a large splint in the region of the heart.
Command of the battalion passed to Adam Osmayev, a Chechen exile educated in the UK and previously accused by Russian authorities of plotting to assassinate Vladimir Putin—a charge widely seen as politically motivated. He had been imprisoned in Ukraine but was released in 2014, after which he joined the battalion.
Osmayev led the Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion until April 2015, often accompanied in the field by his wife, Amina Okueva, a Ukrainian of Chechen descent and a former doctor and sniper. In 2017, Okueva was assassinated in an ambush targeting Osmayev—a killing believed to be orchestrated by Russian intelligence.
The Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion became the spiritual vanguard of Ichkerian involvement in Ukraine, representing a broader transnational resistance against Russian imperialism. It also served as a training ground for newer Chechen units like the Sheikh Mansur Battalion and the OBON (Special Purpose Battalion) formed later during the full-scale Russian invasion of 2022.
Their motto, “Marşo ya joƶalla” (“Freedom or Death”), encapsulates not only the will of the Chechen resistance but also the shared struggle for liberation among oppressed peoples of the post-Soviet space.
Flag of Ichkeria signed by members of the battalion
🛡️ Analytical Profile
Attribute
Details
Name
Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion
Founded
March 2014
Founder
Brig. Gen. Isa Munayev
Headquarters
Initially formed in Denmark; deployed in Ukraine
Affiliation
Free Caucasus; aligned with Ukrainian Armed Forces
Battle of Ilovaisk, Battle of Debaltseve (2014–2015)
Notable Leaders
Isa Munayev (2014–2015), Adam Osmayev (2015–)
Notable Members
Amina Okueva (sniper, killed in 2017) Isa Sadygov (a colonel of the Azerbaijani armed forces), Sergey Melnikoff (a US citizen, awarded the Order of the Hero of Ichkeria) Nureddin Ismailov (who, during the Karabakh war, commanded the “Grey Wolves” detachment) Shamil Tsuneoka Tanaka (a Japanese journalist who served in Gelayev’s unit)
Motto
“Marşo ya joƶalla” – “Freedom or Death”
Symbol
Dudaev’s face above two wings, one with Chechen colors, the other with Ukrainian colors
Legacy
Inspiration for later battalions (Sheikh Mansur, OBON)
Status
Active in 2014–2015; later integrated or reorganized into other units
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