Does the Ukrainian Military Display a ‘Nazi Cross’ on Some Vehicles or Tanks? | Snopes.com

The cross at issue in the viral video is neither a modern-era German Iron Cross nor the simple cross used as an indicator by the Ukrainian army. It is true that variants similar to the cross in the viral video had been used by the Nazis in World War II. This type of cross has a specific history in Ukraine, however, that predated its use in Nazi Germany. A guerrilla warfare campaign carried out by the Ukrainian National Army against the Red Army and other forces from 1919 to 1920 is known as the First Winter Campaign. [...] A "steel cross," as it is sometimes described in Ukraine, was the symbol of that Winter Campaign - the military award given for participation in these campaigns contained that equidistant cross. In 2019, a Ukrainian military unit that has been fighting in the Donbas region of Ukraine since 2014 - the 28th Mechanized Infantry Brigade - was renamed "Knights of the First Winter Campaign." That Brigade's insignia, approved by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, presently contains this same cross. [...] While one could debate the merits of using a symbol that has since become complicated by its use in other contexts, there is no reason to interpret such cross's use in Ukraine as a reference to Nazism.
Title: Does the Ukrainian Military Display a ‘Nazi Cross’ on Some Vehicles or Tanks? | Snopes.com
URL: https://www.snopes.com/news/2023/06/28/ukrainian-military-nazi-cross/
Publisher: Snopes
Date published: June 28, 2023
Description:

The cross at issue in the viral video is neither a modern-era German Iron Cross nor the simple cross used as an indicator by the Ukrainian army. It is true that variants similar to the cross in the viral video had been used by the Nazis in World War II.

This type of cross has a specific history in Ukraine, however, that predated its use in Nazi Germany. A guerrilla warfare campaign carried out by the Ukrainian National Army against the Red Army and other forces from 1919 to 1920 is known as the First Winter Campaign. […] A “steel cross,” as it is sometimes described in Ukraine, was the symbol of that Winter Campaign – the military award given for participation in these campaigns contained that equidistant cross.

In 2019, a Ukrainian military unit that has been fighting in the Donbas region of Ukraine since 2014 – the 28th Mechanized Infantry Brigade – was renamed “Knights of the First Winter Campaign.” That Brigade’s insignia, approved by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, presently contains this same cross. […]

While one could debate the merits of using a symbol that has since become complicated by its use in other contexts, there is no reason to interpret such cross’s use in Ukraine as a reference to Nazism.

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