An information evening in Brussels organised by a Ukrainian army brigade with links to neo-Nazism has been cancelled.
The event was scheduled to take place on 28 July in the municipality of Ganshoren. The Third Ukrainian Assault Brigade – connected to the Azov Battalion with neo-Nazi affiliations – is currently touring around Europe, hosting information evenings and encouraging Ukrainians to conscript.
The events are organised in tandem with the NGO Promote Ukraine but after venues in Berlin, Hamburg, Rotterdam and now Brussels pulled out, several sessions have been unable to go ahead.
"Yesterday evening we found out that the city hall of Ganshoren wanted to cancel the event," Promote Ukraine stated on Thursday. The NGO negotiated with the venue to rectify this but the cancellation went through "at the initiative of the Third Assault Brigade", who reportedly received instructions to do so from President of Ukraine Volodomyr Zelenskyy.
"Whether in Ukraine or abroad, we always comply with all security requirements and this time we are not going to expose our people to any threats either," the Brigade commented.
Recruitment drive?
Last week, the Brussels-West police zone opened an investigation into the security risks posed by the event. Mayor of Ganshoren Sabrina Baraka (formerly MR) confirmed to Belga News Agency that the investigation is still ongoing but the decision to cancel the event came from the Brigade itself.
A Brigade spokesperson told Belga News Agency that the tour aims to collect funds and recruit volunteers. "Do you want to join the Brigade but don't know how? Ask your questions directly to professional soldiers," states one social media post advertising the initiative. However, Promote Ukraine denies these claims, seeking to reassure people that the session is merely an information evening.
Two sessions have gone ahead in Poland on Monday and Tuesday and two more will take place in the Czech Republic and Lithuania.
