The Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) and its militant wing the Imperial Legion (IL) have received increasing attention from Western intelligence agencies and security researchers since the mid-2010s. RIM describes its ideology as imperialist, ultra-reactionary, Russian Orthodox, fascist, anti-liberal, and anti-communist.
The Imperial Legion reportedly sent 300 fighters to Ukraine in 2014 alone. IL seemingly left Ukraine in 2017 and fought in Syria, Libya, and possibly the Central African Republic (CAR involvement is unconfirmed) before returning to Ukraine shortly after the February 2022 invasion.