FALSE: The suspect in the attempted assassination of Trump is linked to the “Azov” Brigade

Following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump on September 15, 2024, Russian disinformation campaigns have once again tried to discredit Ukrainians. On social media, including Threads, Russians claim that the suspect in the attack, Ryan Wesley Routh, supported Ukraine, appeared in a video by the “Azov” Brigade, and was involved in recruiting “mercenaries” for the war in Ukraine.

This is false. Ryan Routh has no connection to the “Azov” Brigade or the International Legion. He attended a peaceful demonstration in downtown Kyiv, open to everyone, and accidentally appeared in the footage.

On September 15, 2024, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation reported an assassination attempt on Donald Trump while he was at a golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Secret Service agents guarding Trump noticed the barrel of an AK-style rifle sticking out through the bushes along the golf course. After one of Trump’s guards fired at the spot, the attacker dropped the weapon and other items and fled in an SUV. He was later apprehended by law enforcement in a neighboring county. The suspect in the attempted attack is a 58-year-old man named Ryan Wesley Routh, who had previously supported Trump but later changed his opinion, calling the former president a “fool.”

Does Ryan Routh have ties to Ukraine?

After the full-scale invasion began, Routh indeed supported Ukraine and condemned Russian aggression. On his LinkedIn, he posted photos from Kyiv, and in 2023, his book about Ukraine was available for purchase on Amazon. In the book’s description, he noted that after spending five months in Ukraine, he realized that under the current conditions, Ukraine could not win the war. According to him, the book is important to show that losing is unacceptable and that the world must do something to ensure Ukraine’s victory.

Using keywords from English-speaking users, we found the video with Routh that the Russians mentioned. The original recording was published on the “SAVE AZOV” page on the social network X (formerly Twitter) on May 1, 2022. The video shows people participating in a demonstration in downtown Kyiv to draw attention to the defenders of Mariupol and civilians, urging the world to save them from the city blockaded by the Russians. Among them, Ryan can be seen.

Meanwhile, the press service of the “Azov” Brigade stated that this was an open, peaceful demonstration in support of the Mariupol garrison, open to anyone. The “Azov” Brigade has no connection to Routh; he accidentally appeared in the video footage.

Additionally, the Russians claim that Ryan allegedly recruited “mercenaries” for the war in Ukraine. In reality, there are no “mercenaries” in Ukraine; we have repeatedly debunked fakes on this topic. According to the regulations on foreign service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, foreigners and stateless persons are accepted into the ranks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces by contract, meaning they are treated the same as Ukrainian servicemen. They serve in the International Legion. Mercenaries, on the other hand, are not official members of the armed forces and participate in wars primarily for personal, often financial, gain.

In a comment to CNN, an unnamed representative of Ukraine’s International Legion confirmed that Routh had contacted them several times. However, the representative noted that the suspect was never part of the unit, which consists of foreign volunteers.

Although Ryan, as Oleksandr Shaguri, an officer of the Department of Coordination of Work with Foreigners of the Ground Forces Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, told CNN, really offered the Ukrainian army a large number of recruits from different countries. However, his statements seemed unrealistic to the command of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the department did not even respond to his proposal. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine confirmed the absence of any connection between Ryan and Ukrainian state institutions.

Raut himself told The New York Times in March 2023 that he was willing, in some cases illegally, to bring Afghan recruits from Iran and Pakistan to Ukraine. However, it remains unknown whether he succeeded. Ultimately, this shows that Routh acted independently and without the coordination of Ukrainian officials, ruling out any ties to Ukraine. Nevertheless, Russia uses him to discredit Ukrainian society. Propagandists also attempt to demonize “Azov,” once again labeling them as “neo-Nazis” — a disinformation claim we have previously debunked in other materials.