Ukrainian Resistance Against the Russian Invasion: A Lesson for Malaysia Fadzil Mokhtar

The war in Ukraine is into its fourth week, but Russia’s goals of capturing the Ukrainian capital, and decapitating the government of President Zelensky remain elusive. Far from shattering their morale, Russia’s invasion has instead strengthened the resolve of Ukrainians who have shown an indomitable fighting spirit to safeguard their homeland. As a result, the gains made by Russian forces have been limited to the south of the country, and the pace of their offensive elsewhere has been impeded by fierce resistance from the Ukrainian armed forces and civilians. 

Ukrainian civilians, galvanized by the Churchillian leadership of their President, have risen up in arms against the mighty invasion force, defending their motherland in remarkably violent as well as non-violent ways. People from all walks of life, and of all ages, have   responded to the Russian incursion with hostility, many of whom have engaged in outright combat, with AK 47 rifles and homemade Molotov cocktails, while others have constructed barricades, blocked  Russian convoys, torn down road signs,  and formed a cyber-army. Their heroic actions, together with the conventional opposition by Ukrainian regular forces, have inflicted a heavy toll on the Russians.

Most of the civilians have joined the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Force, a new military branch, established early this year, comprising of 25 brigades spread throughout the country. This force of civilian volunteers, marshalled by professional soldiers, is designed to undertake a variety of missions to combat Russia’s onslaught including direct military attacks, clandestine activities, and infrastructure protection.  A recent study found that 56 percent of Ukrainians desired to join the force, many times over the 2 million originally needed.  With such a sizeable force, reinforced by other spontaneously formed civilian resistance organizations and a determined professional military, Ukraine’s focus is to “bleed Moscow so as to make its occupation untenable.” 

Ukrainian citizen’s resistance is expected to continue should Moscow succeed in subduing Kyiv, and decide to occupy the country. Given the advantage of geography, an insurgency, waged by Ukrainian regular soldiers and resistance movements, could wear down their enemy’s will to fight, and erode Russia’s domestic support for its occupation of Ukraine. 

The patriotic and defiant response of the Ukrainian civilians underscores the importance of mobilizing the civilian population to support regular armed forces in opposing an external aggression. The citizenry’s will to resist, when motivated by a strong nationalist ideal and underpinned by a level of resilience, presents an obstacle that cannot be easily circumvented by an aggressor, even with its numerically and technologically superior military capabilities.

It is, however, noteworthy that resistance is not a new concept, for history is replete with occurrences of civilian uprising against foreign invasion and occupation. A classic example was the resistance by the Spanish populace against Napoleon’s invasion of Spain in 1808. Tying down the French troops in guerilla warfare, the resisters sapped the will of the occupying force, and slowly attritted its strength, contributing to the defeat of the French five years later. 

Another instance was the Polish resistance against German occupation during WWII which was the largest resistance movement throughout Nazi-occupied Europe. The Poles undertook a wide range of activities, from countering German propaganda to attacking German troops, and from transmitting information on their enemy to sabotaging German lines of communication.  This resistance organization proved vital to Allied war efforts when it managed to smuggle to London a V2 rocket, the then game-changing supersonic weapon being developed by the German Reich.  

Resistance capability was also the cornerstone of the defense strategy of neutral European states during the Cold War, the most notable of which was Switzerland’s preparation for military and non-military resistance in enemy-occupied Swiss territory. By integrating this critical element, and a robust conventional force, into its total defense strategy, Switzerland aimed to make the country “an indigestible and costly to consume ‘hedgehog’ to potential adversaries.”

Interestingly, total defense has also gained impetus in the Baltic states, necessitated by their fear of Russian revanchism following Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. The national defense of these states is today anchored on a combination of conventional preparedness and citizen resistance to thwart any invader attempting conquest of their territory. 

Total defense is also a strategy adopted by Malaysia, but the focus seems to be on building internal resilience with no attention given to the mobilization of the civilian population in deterring or fending off an armed aggression. While psychological resilience building is undeniably essential for establishing the mental fortitude of the people, a resilient society in itself will not necessarily translate into a tangible fighting force capable of buttressing the capabilities of the armed forces.  

Therefore, drawing insights from the situation in Europe, and considering the military’s resource constraints, non-military resistance is a strategic choice to be considered for augmenting Malaysia’s traditional defense and deterrence measures. But, organized resistance is a complex and risky enterprise which cannot be effectively conducted without the appropriate mechanisms and proper organizations in place.

Fortunately, Malaysia has a large recruitment pool to develop its resistance capability, one of   which is the three million strong Malaysian Volunteer Corps (RELA) that makes a perfect fit for armed and violent resistance. Additionally, numerous professional groups and civil society organizations   could be organized for both armed as well as unarmed resistance. The rest of the population could be encouraged to form either loosely coordinated or suitably structured local groups to partake in non-violent resistance which could be as consequential as the other forms of resistance.  Still, a lot more has to be done to stimulate the formation of a critical mass of civilian resisters dedicated to becoming a truly robust line of defense for the nation. 

Of course resistance alone cannot win the nation’s wars. Yet, resistance, executed by strong-willed, emotionally charged and rigorously trained groups, and integrated with a professional military force, could potently raise the costs and risks of military adventurism as evidenced by the war in Ukraine. Malaysia cannot ignore this lesson of history.

Fadzil Mokhtar, a retired Malaysian Army officer, is currently a Fellow at the Centre for Defence and International Security Studies, National Defence University of Malaysia.