“‘Española,’ or ‘Hispaniola’ Battalion is a Russian volunteer battalion currently serving in Ukraine. Indeed, the military unit consists of hooligans or ‘ultras,’ football’s most fanatical supporters. Española has successfully recruited these diehard supporters…through promises of cash and camaraderie…(with) a passion for violence and neo-Nazism.” — Jake Cremin, for Grey Dynamics, June 13, 2024.
Formed in February 2022, at the time of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the 88th Reconnaissance and Sabotage Brigade “Española” is a paramilitary, volunteer group of mercenaries, created by recruiting radical, ultra-right-wing fans, or “hooligans,” of Russian football (soccer) clubs, and led by Stanislav Orlov, age 44, using the callsign “Spaniard.” The name of the new unit is a reference to the pirate schooner Hispaniola in Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 book, Treasure Island, so he is clearly promoting a renegade, pirate culture. Orlov was a combat veteran/paratrooper (106th Airborne Division) in the Second Chechen War in 1999, he formed and commanded the “Skull-and-Bones” reconnaissance company in 2014, and saw action with them over the following year.
Initially part of the separatist, Donetsk People’s Republic army, the Española brigade has officially become a private military company (PMC) since March 2023. Orlov bluntly stated that this status will “allow us to choose the directions where to fight,” and choose our “own internal rules.”
According to Ukrainian intelligence sources, Española pays its volunteers $2,565 per month, with a minimum, six-month service contract, and an insurance policy of $32,400 for serious injury, or $54,000 death benefit for family members. They recruit mainly from the hardcore, Russian soccer clubs, and have a strict code of conduct against the use of alcoholic drinks. Their motto is, “One for all, and all for one!”
The fact that they hire a very high percentage of neo-Nazi fanatics demonstrates the utter hypocrisy of the Russian regime, which allegedly seeks to “de-Nazify” Ukraine, even though President Zelenskyy of Ukraine is Jewish, but Española blatantly recruits neo-Nazi volunteers to do the bidding of the belligerent Russian Federation.
Their logo depicts a Russian Tula Tokarev TT-33 pistol of World War Two vintage, chambered in 7.62x25mm Tokarev (or 9mm Luger.) The TT-33 is now obsolete, but still used in combat service, and interesting because of its smaller caliber and very high muzzle velocity, firing an 85-grain bullet at a blazing 1,375 feet per second (Mach 1.2), a very hot load.
Española was involved in the Battle of Mariupol in early 2022, the Battle of Bakhmut from July 2022 to May 2023, the Battle of Avdiivka from October 2023 to February 2024, and the Battle of Chasiv Yar, a Ukrainian city literally obliterated, or “completely erased,” from April 2024 to July 2025, as a minimum. They currently have an estimated 550 members, including 100 operators for kamikaze drones, making it more of a battalion-sized unit, and not a true brigade.
The unit is armed primarily with fairly-new, since 2016, Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifles in 5.45x39mm, with 16.3-inch barrels. A compact, AK-12K (or AK-12C) version exists, with an 11.4-inch barrel, for special operations units, but existing photos of Española do not yet depict this shorter version.
Instead, it’s been evaluated in combat since May 2025 by Russian paratrooper units, specifically including the elite, 7th Guards Mountain Airborne Division from Novorossiysk, Russia, fighting in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine. The newest AK-12Ks are now being delivered in MultiCam camouflage finish, eventually to be issued to all airborne units, and probably all Spetsnaz commando forces, as well.
Española’s issued handguns include modern, unlicensed, Russian copies (by Orsis, in Moscow) of the Glock-17, and certain ČZ (Czech) models, probably the ČZ 75B or P-10C. Glocks are definitely preferred, however, because of their utter reliability.
The standard AK-12 is already in widespread use, issued to most of the 400,000 Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine, as well as to 15,000 North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region of Russia from mid-2024 through 2025, at least 6,000 of whom were subsequently killed, wounded, or missing. So, Ukrainian forces have captured large quantities of Russian AK-12s.
Orlov recruits fighters with specific skills, including reconnaissance experts, snipers, drone operators, infantrymen, medics, drivers/mechanics, and air defense specialists. President Vladimir Putin’s own, “United Russia,” ruling, political party is apparently providing the funding and direction for Española, which is effectively controlled by the GRU Main (Intelligence) Directorate of the General Staff.
It was most interesting to note that since April 8, 2024, Española has been combat-testing the brand-new, Kalashnikov Concern AMB-17 (Avtomat Malogabaritnyj Besshumny, or “Suppressed, Small-sized, Automatic Rifle”) assault carbine in the 9x39mm SP5 subsonic cartridge, or an armor-piercing, SP6 round. The integral suppressor makes this weapon extremely quiet, firing a 9mm, 248-grain, heavyweight, subsonic bullet at 950 feet per second. This firearm provides highly muted, accurate, hard-hitting firepower for Russian forces.
The innovative AMB-17 was designed for covert, close combat by special operations units of the Russian Army and Russian Interior Ministry, as a potential replacement for the combat-proven, AS Val and VSS Vintorez suppressed weapons, using 30-round magazines from either of these previous carbines.
One benefit of having the mercenary, paramilitary, Española brigade test the new AMB-17 in action in Ukraine is plausible deniability, the ability to credibly deny that this special, suppressed weapon is actively used by the Russian Army.
In a brand-new, related development, the similar, Kalashnikov Concern AM-17 assault carbine, created in 2017, at the same time as the AMB-17, was just released in an initial batch on September 1, 2025, as a replacement for the out-of-production (since 1993), AKS-74U compact carbine for special forces and vehicle crews, after its acceptance trials were completed on November 2, 2024. It’s chambered for the standard, 5.45x39mm ammunition of the Russian Army, with a nine-inch barrel, folding stock, and light weight of only 5.5 pounds.
A press release by Kalashnikov Concern on October 8, 2024, stated that the AM-17 was combat-tested in the SVO (“Special Military Operation”) zone (Ukraine) and received a positive review. Based on feedback from Russian military personnel, several changes were made to enhance its performance and reliability.
However, the PrepHole survival web site notes that, “The AM-17 is widely disliked, and to date, much of KG’s (Kalashnikov Group’s) PR (public relations) media demonstrating its use in the ‘SMO zone’ (Ukraine) has fallen to a PMC (Privately Military Company) established by football ultras (Española) in 2022 to fight in Ukraine.” The iNews (Indonesia News) global news website added on September 10, 2025: “Combat-Tested in the Russo-Ukrainian War: Russia’s AM-17 Rifle.”
On September 7, 2025, the El Debate (Spanish Defense) website wrote that, “Kalashnikov tests his new AM-17 rifle in Ukraine…already been tested in combat in Ukraine…as a main rifle for special troop units and security forces…for evaluation in combat conditions.”
So, that’s four separate, independent sources, together essentially stating that the renegade, paramilitary, Española brigade has been testing both the suppressed AMB-17 in 9x39mm, and the AM-17 in 5.45x39mm, in battle in Ukraine, and now the AM-17 is finally entering series production for the Russian Army.
One writer above noted that, “The AM-17 is widely disliked,” possibly because it has an all-polymer, lower receiver, polymer-and-steel, upper receiver, and polymer stock, all in the interest of reducing weight, which may not make it as rugged as steel under harsh, combat conditions.
Perhaps this is why Kalashnikov Concern released the all-new, ultra-compact, AK-12SK (or AK-12SC) carbine in late January 2025, featuring an 8.9-inch barrel, a new variant of the more-traditional, AK-12 series with steel receivers. It’s slightly heavier, at 6.6 pounds, but is likely perceived as tougher and more reliable.
It’s now readily apparent that three of Kalashnikov’s very latest assault weapons (the AK-12, AMB-17, and AM-17) have already seen combat action in the Ukraine War, and the AM-17 is just now entering full production, as the mighty, Russian armed forces continue to upgrade their military arsenals, and the endless, grinding war shows no signs of slowing down.