A St. Petersburg, Russia-based center for military-style training affiliated with the "Russian Imperial Movement" (RIM) promotes its activity on its social media accounts. The center also maintains an Instagram account that serves as an online shop selling military equipment and guides.
The center was founded by prominent RIM member Denis "Vasiliev" Gariev, whose name appears on the U.S. "Specially Designated Nationals And Blocked Persons List" (SDN). Based on the institution's homepage, it has been active since 2012, holding over 20 courses with more than 3,000 graduates. The site states: "[...] We see our task as raising the level of national security by educating conscientious citizens in military training courses."
Training provided by the center includes military, tactical and guerilla courses, such as sniper and warfare in wooded areas, which appear to take place at its premises in St. Petersburg. The center gained international notoriety when it supplied mercenaries in the Donbass War.[1]
The following report examines recent activity on the center's social media pages.
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Military Courses
On October 7, 2021, the center posted an invitation to participate in its training course for military sniper skills, slated to take place on December 11-15, 2021. The post read: "You can learn about camouflage, tactics, ballistics, working with sniper equipment, and of course firearms training, by enrolling in our... course." The post provided a link to register for the course, as well as a contact information for inquiries.
Center Website And Online Shop
The center's website gives a map to its location. The site also claims the center has "been training since 2012," offers "more than 20 courses," and has "more than 3,000 graduates."
The center's mission is listed as: "In the modern world, not being a warrior is a criminal weakness for a man. [The] center for tactical and fire training... is engaged in training civilians in survival skills in conditions of local armed conflicts, social instability, and emergencies. Not a single century has passed without global wars, and the ring of 'hot spots' surrounding Russia is getting closer and closer. We see our task as raising the level of national security by educating conscientious citizens in military training courses."
A post promoting another course mentioned that participants would receive military training from experienced instructors.
Online Shop
On the center's Instagram account, items listed for sale include firearm accessories and Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) patches.
[1] Euromaidanpress.com/2018/06/16/three-largest-russian-militant-training-facilities-identified, June 16, 2018.
