This will not affect the negotiation process for the exchange of prisoners.

The recognition by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of the Ukrainian regiment "Azov" as a "terrorist organization" is legal nonsense.

This was stated by adviser to the head of the President's Office, Mikhaylo Podolyak in his Telegram channel.

According to him, such a decision is a purely internal propaganda product because it not affect anything.

“It sounds a little strange: a country that is one step away from being recognized as a sponsor of terrorism and which violates any rules and customs of war, recognizes someone as a terrorist organization … Any decisions in Russian jurisdictions regarding Ukraine or its military personnel are not will have no legal value for the world and will not affect the negotiation process for the exchange of prisoners," Podolyak said.

And to the luminaries of "Russian law", I will reveal a secret: not a single volunteer battalion "Azov" has existed since 2014.

Mikhaylo Podolyak

He also recalled that "Azov" is not a volunteer battalion but a separate special-purpose detachment as part of the 12th operational brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine.

“The part of our Armed Forces, which strictly followed orders, adhere to all aspects of the conduct of hostilities and absolutely clearly defended the territory of their country. This is key in understanding the situation: only the Russian army is an occupier on foreign territory, and therefore any actions against this army are quite legal," he said.

According to him, the decisions of the Russian courts will not have any consequences in the international legal field.

"First: Russian jurisdiction does not extend to the territory of Ukraine and to the actions of Ukrainian citizens to protect the state's territorial integrity. Second: any decisions of Russian courts regarding the war in Ukraine and on the territory of Ukraine are not legitimate from the point of view of international law. Third: Ukraine strictly adheres to international declarations and conventions regarding the rights of prisoners of war and strictly demands that Russia also adhere to legal norms and rules and not to throw illegal decisions into the public space. Fourth: Russia will in any case, bear direct legal responsibility for the abuse of prisoners of war, particularly through the provocation of invalid and fake "judicial decisions". Even if the Russian Federation needs these decisions purely for internal propaganda use" Podolyak wrote.

After this decision, the Azov fighters called on the US State Department and authorized bodies of other states to recognize the Russian Federation as a terrorist state.