Paul Goble
Moscow is once again using the Muslim Spiritual Directorates (MSDs), bodies the Soviet Union set up in World War II to supervise the Islamic community, for the primary purpose for which they were established: to mobilize Muslims to fight against a foreign enemy. If anything, the role of the MSDs is even more important now in Moscow’s war against Ukraine than it was against Nazi Germany. The Kremlin has chosen to rely on non-Russian areas and poorer Russian populations for recruitment to maintain the perception of normalcy among residents of major cities (see EDM, July 14, 2022). The MSDs’ roles have also expanded to encompass more tasks than during World War II. These roles now include recruiting young Muslims, sending aid and ammunition to the front, limiting internal clashes between Muslim and non-Muslim soldiers in the field, and suppressing anger among Muslims concerning the rising number of their combat deaths (12-kanal.ru, August 18, 2023). Opinions on the success of the MSDs in meeting these tasks have been mixed, but Moscow’s decision to rely on them both reflects the Russian government’s own administrative weakness and the importance of these directorates.
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