In which oblasts of Ukraine did the Sparta Battalion fight the Ukrainian army?
War in Donbass The War in Donbass is an armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine. From the beginning of March 2014, protests by pro-Russian and anti-government groups took place in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine, together commonly called the "Donbass", in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution and the Euromaidan movement. These demonstrations, which followed the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, and which were part of a wider group of concurrent pro-Russian protests across southern and eastern Ukraine, escalated into an armed conflict between the separatist forces of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR respectively), and the Ukrainian government. In the Donetsk People's Republic, from May 2014 to a change of the top leadership in August 2014, some of the top leaders were Russian citizens. During the middle of 2014, Russian paramilitaries were reported to make up between 15% and 80% of the combatants.
Azov Battalion The Azov Regiment (Ukrainian: Полк Азов ) is a National Guard of Ukraine regiment. The unit is based in Mariupol in the Azov Sea coastal region. It saw its first combat experience recapturing Mariupol from pro-Russian separatists forces in June 2014. Initially a volunteer militia, formed as the Azov Battalion on 5 May 2014 during the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, since 12 November 2014 Azov has been incorporated into the National Guard of Ukraine. All members of the unit are under contract of and serve as part of the National Guard of Ukraine.