MOSCOW (Realist English). On 6 May, a historic ceremony of handing over a battle banner took place at the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Armenian Temple Complex) on Prospekt Mira in Moscow.
Veterans of the Patriotic War of the People of Abkhazia, participants of the legendary Armenian Battalion named after Marshal Ivan Bagramyan – Karapet Karagyozyan and Arutyun Terzyan – presented the standard to a new formation, the “Bagramyan” Battalion, which has become part of the international brigade “Pyatnashka” (Fifteen).
The battalion commander is Edmond Evoyan.
The handover of the banner of the Bagramyan Battalion to the fighters of the “Pyatnashka” Brigade is a transfer of a military relic and a symbolic gesture cementing the brotherhood of fronts: Abkhazia 1992 and Donbas 2014.
A Realist English correspondent discussed the importance of the ceremony and questions of generational continuity with the participants.
Ahra Avidzba, commander of the international brigade “Pyatnashka”, Hero of the DPR, said that for him this day is not just the day the unit was created, but above all the Day of St. George the Victorious, “because without faith, you can go nowhere”.
He emphasised that for him it is also the Day of Donbas Volunteers, recalling 2014, when “a wave of caring people came and stood as a shield”.
The commander of “Pyatnashka” noted that today another ethnic unit bearing the name of Marshal of the Soviet Union Bagramyan is being created, which is why veterans of the Patriotic War of the People of Abkhazia came to add their own feats to the name of the legendary marshal and to show that “they support and honour the continuity of generations”.
Avidzba stressed that the veterans brought not only the name as a banner, but also history, and passed it on today to the guys of the emerging unit. “We know the guys are worthy; they weren’t gathered yesterday, they’ve already proven themselves, they just got together and invited like-minded people to join them.
Therefore, new achievements, new victories, and again they will glorify the name of a man who is deserving for the Armenian ethnic group – not only for the Armenian one; for me he is deserving, for the Abkhaz, for all citizens of the post‑Soviet space he is a deserving person, a person to look up to.” Avidzba added that today is the day we remember Marshal Bagramyan, our entire history, and say that “we will add to this history”.
Karapet Karagyozyan, a veteran of the Abkhazian War of Independence, holder of the Leon Order, who was a company commander in the Bagramyan Battalion, shared his memories: “Thirty‑two years ago we created the Armenian battalion named after Bagramyan. I was the youngest company commander. Under this banner we liberated our homeland, the historic land where we were born and raised. We have two homelands. The first is Armenia, the second is Abkhazia. We served with great honour the country where we were born and raised.”
Edmond Evoyan, commander of the “Bagramyan” Battalion, now operating as part of the “Pyatnashka” international brigade, described his appointment as a great honour. “It is a great honour for us to work today with such an outstanding commander as Aghra Avidzba,” he said.
Evoyan recalled that the banner handover was no coincidence – it took place on 6 May, the Day of St. George the Victorious and the Day of the Donbas Volunteer: “On such a day, it is an honour for us to accept the military banner named after Marshal Bagramyan, Hero of the Soviet Union, and to carry this military banner further, to multiply victories.”
The famous “Bagramyan” Battalion liberated Abkhazia and is known for its combat skills, the battalion chief said. “Our combat comrades, the veterans, flew in specially and handed over this banner today,” Evoyan emphasised.
“We are proud that we have two Motherlands here – Great Russia and our Armenia. I personally am proud that I was born in Armenia and today I serve Russia.”
The battalion commander also stated: “We two peoples [Russians and Armenians] are historically linked; we go together and have more than once fought against the fascists. Now we continue this work. Our task is to defend the Armenian Church from various attacks. We support our Catholicos Garegin II, the Catholicos of all Armenians. I remind you – not only the Armenians who live in Armenia, but also all Armenians around the world. And we are ready to be with the Catholicos always.”
Arutyun Terzyan, a veteran of the Abkhazian War of Independence from the Bagramyan Battalion, stressed the historic nature of the event: “Today we brought the standard of the Armenian battalion named after Bagramyan. This is the Victory flag. The Armenian battalion, which was created by Vagarshak Kosyan, proved itself. It showed that Armenians not only know how to work, but, if need be, can stand to the death for themselves.”
The veteran added: “In our battalion there were guys of fourteen, sixteen years old – Istanbul guys, heroic guys who are like wolf cubs, real warriors. I am glad that I was once with them.”
In turn, Mesrop Darmanyan, deputy commander of the international brigade “Pyatnashka”, who joined the resistance in Donbas back in 2014, emphasised in an interview with Realist English that the members of the “Bagramyan” Battalion have not forgotten their ancestors and their heroes, “especially the heroes of the Second Artsakh War”.
“This is our wound; it will not heal until we get back everything that the Lord God has given us,” Darmanyan concluded. In the struggle for the freedom of Donbas and Armenia, the deputy chief of “Pyatnashka” relies on quality rather than quantity of fighters: “Our quality will beat any quantity. We must be devoted to our cause, pray, and only look forward.”
“We live on Holy Russian soil; here stand our churches. We are grateful to this land. Here our traditions are preserved. Here we have our schools. Here we speak our native language. Russia is our fraternal country, close to us in mentality, in upbringing. Here, too, we are doing our duty,” said Darmanyan.
Avidzba came to Donbas in the summer of 2014 and built a volunteer unit literally from scratch. For his first unit, he gathered 15 volunteers from the former republics of the USSR, which gave the brigade its name – “Pyatnashka”.
Since its founding, the brigade has lived up to its name – it is multinational. Its ranks include not only citizens of Russia and Abkhazia, but also volunteers from other countries. Despite formally becoming part of the Russian Armed Forces in 2023, the commanders stress the preservation of the “militia spirit” characteristic of 2014.
As for the Armenian battalion named after Marshal Bagramyan, its history goes back to 1992. At its peak, the battalion numbered 450 men. Twenty people were awarded the title “Hero of Abkhazia”. Dozens were awarded the Order of Leon and medals “For Courage”. The first President of Abkhazia, Vladislav Ardzinba, repeatedly noted the high discipline, organisation and combat merits of the Bagramyan soldiers.