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At the end of April around 1000 'Night Wolves' and the biker clubs supporters met in Moscow to celebrate the start of the motorcycle season. They paraded through the capital, put on bike shows and put on concerts. But do they have a hidden extremist agenda?
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00:00A wolf's head trailing fire, black leather jackets, powerful motorbikes, militant behavior,
00:14tough guys and their machines decorated with Russian and Soviet flags,
00:19and a club president who in Russia enjoys superstar status.
00:24The Night Wolves are far and away the biggest biker group in Russia.
00:33Its 5,000 members are spread nationwide over 50 branches, or chapters.
00:39The Night Wolves are loyal to the Kremlin, ultra-Orthodox and convinced patriots.
00:45Their president is Alexander Saldostanov.
00:48The surgeon, as he's known, is a close friend of the Russian president.
00:52It was a great honor for me to be introduced to Putin, and I am also honored to be regarded as his friend.
01:02I can justifiably claim to be his friend, because when we were in the Crimea together, I saw this special look in his eyes.
01:13The Night Wolves definitely enjoy political influence in Russia.
01:17The bikers make their presence felt in the Crimea and on the Black Sea coast, together with Vladimir Putin.
01:26I was born in the Ukraine, grew up in the Crimea, and now live in Moscow.
01:30It is all one country, and in my opinion, must be kept together.
01:35Outwardly, the Night Wolves like to present themselves as peaceful motorcycling enthusiasts.
01:42But experts know that the club is a paramilitary organization.
01:46In the Crimea, the Night Wolves interfere with private military security firms, around 500 in recent years, and take over their business by force.
01:58Who exactly are the Night Wolves, and what do they really want?
02:14We've come to Moscow, the Russian capital, to visit the home base of the biggest biker group in the country.
02:21It's late April.
02:25The clubhouse is located in the west of Moscow.
02:29The bikers are celebrating the start of the motorcycling season.
02:33It's a major event.
02:34Hundreds of Night Wolves members are expected.
02:37The program has been tightly organized.
02:40Bike shows, a motorcycle parade through the streets of the Russian capital, and concerts.
02:45All with the blessing of the Russian government, and under police protection.
02:51In Germany, this would be unthinkable.
02:54But what has made the Night Wolves so big and influential?
02:57We've come to meet club president Alexander Saldostanov, known as The Surgeon, in his garage on Clubland.
03:09It's a large corrugated iron shed, crammed with bikes of all kinds.
03:15Vehicles for the Night Wolves' lavish motorcycle shows.
03:18The Night Wolves have played a key role in the history of the motorcycle movement.
03:30We have continuously defended our authority and our goals, ever since we were established 26 years ago.
03:38The Surgeon proudly showed us his collection of old military machines and fantasy bikes.
03:48Bizarre self-built models that are threatening and intimidating.
03:58This one is made entirely from metal.
04:01You really can ride it.
04:03It's a model from the stories we use in our shows.
04:06One of them, which we present for children, ends with this wolf appearing on stage as the saviour of the world.
04:18This creation is unique.
04:20A masterpiece that would win first prize at any exhibition.
04:27It's the motorbike of evil in our stories.
04:30Made of metal, it was built entirely by hand.
04:41This motorcycle can get angry.
04:44It spits fire and smoke and can change the color of its eyes.
04:50That's how it shows its feelings.
04:51Final preparations for the motorcycle parade through Moscow.
04:5854-year-old Viktor Keller is the boss of the Kaliningrad Night Wolves and a leading figure in the group as a whole.
05:06He claims to be an entrepreneur in the oil business, but wasn't prepared to go into detail.
05:11You can't compare us with a motorcycle club in the West.
05:16They're all lawless.
05:18But we're not.
05:19Our president, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, is a self-assured person and would never enter into such a friendship with any other club.
05:28That is a great honor for us, one it seems, that we have earned.
05:33This friendship exists because we have done something for our country.
05:40And we will continue to serve Russia, irrespective of our relationship with the president.
05:49But are the night wolves really as harmless as their boss tries to make out?
05:54In a few hours' time, the biker group's home base will be teeming with members.
06:00Putin's bikers are waiting for the go-ahead for their traditional motorcycle parade through the Russian capital.
06:14I wouldn't say that the government gives us total freedom.
06:17The fact is that at present we have a government which is active abroad.
06:22It takes patriotic action and we are patriots.
06:27We are working in the same direction and have the same goal.
06:32There are areas where the government helps us and areas where we help the government.
06:37And that's a good thing.
06:39But our biker group had a patriotic ideology even before we established relations with the government.
06:45Club president Alexander Saldostanov is the biker's undisputed star.
06:53He loves the big stage and media appearances.
06:59Pictures of Sebastopol in the Crimea.
07:02This is where the biker's leader was born.
07:04It's also where the night wolves have staged several major shows.
07:08The last one was in 2014, following annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula by Russia.
07:15It was characterized by lots of pathos, hero worship and patriotism.
07:20The guest of honor in the audience was Russian president Vladimir Putin.
07:24Saldostanov is a media professional and knows how to capture the limelight.
07:32By placing a wreath, for example, at the tomb of the unknown warrior in Moscow.
07:37Wherever Russia demonstrates nationalism and patriotism, the biker's boss is in the front row.
07:43Patriotism is like the word love.
07:50Words cannot describe the extent of our patriotism.
07:57For me, it is first and foremost a love of the fatherland.
08:05Russia is like a being with its own soul.
08:08It is a living creature, one I, too, feel a close bond with,
08:15and one which has a great influence on me.
08:22If Russia is ailing, I ail as well.
08:26If Russia is flourishing, I, too, flourish.
08:29The Night Wolves like to present themselves as peaceable motorcyclists.
08:39But is this fact or fiction?
08:41We decided to find out more about the Night Wolves.
08:45A remote railway station in the north of Moscow.
08:48We've come to meet Sergei Kanev, a journalist and expert on organized crime.
08:54He's also investigated the Night Wolves' world and, as a result of his research,
08:59has even been threatened by the bikers.
09:03We can only speculate on the Night Wolves' contact with organized crime.
09:12The surgeon is the managing director of a security firm.
09:16So, for this reason alone, he must have numerous contacts
09:19with all kinds of authorities and public offices and criminal circles.
09:30You can tell this from the way the Night Wolves present themselves.
09:34This is clear that many of the Night Wolves come from the police force
09:42and some have even committed crimes, like assault.
09:51Words that cast the bikers in a different light.
09:54When we put those claims to the Night Wolves,
09:57they dismiss them as lies and propaganda
09:59dreamt up by a liberal press hostile to Russia.
10:04We are not a criminal organization, nor will we ever be.
10:11Do you really think the Russian government
10:13would cooperate with a criminal organization?
10:17That's nonsense, of course.
10:20Foreign newspapers once reported that shady dealings
10:23take place on club premises.
10:26So, journalists paid us a visit
10:28and spoke to the club's president.
10:31They had a look around but didn't find anything.
10:34They saw that we're a charitable organization
10:36that supports lots of projects.
10:40So, what is being claimed is absolute rubbish.
10:47His explanation is not very convincing.
10:50Founded in 1989, shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union,
10:55the Night Wolves are the oldest motorcycling club in Russia.
10:58The bikers are regarded as nationalist, arch-conservative, and totally loyal to the Kremlin.
11:06Alexander Saldostanov likes to be near to President Vladimir Putin,
11:10and he is happy to be seen with the bikers' leader.
11:13Take this meeting on the Black Sea, for example.
11:17Alexander Saldostanov benefits from his contacts in the Kremlin.
11:22It enables him to constantly extend his influence.
11:26In 2013, he was even awarded a medal,
11:29presented personally by Vladimir Putin himself,
11:32for the patriotic education of Russia's youth.
11:36In the Crimea, the surgeon campaigned for Putin and for Russia.
11:49But the freedom-loving people of the Crimea don't trust politicians,
11:54and they rejected his efforts.
11:56They did not understand why he was doing that for Putin.
12:07Saldostanov also intervened in operations in the Ukraine.
12:14The Night Wolves meddled with private security firms in the Crimea
12:18and took over their businesses by force.
12:20Last year, it is said, 500 companies were affected by this.
12:31And it wouldn't surprise me
12:33if numerous security firms are soon active in the Crimea.
12:40Companies linked in some way or another to the Night Wolves.
12:43In Russia, Alexander Saldostanov is seen as an active businessman
12:54who has firm control of his Night Wolves.
12:57The biker's boss can count on the absolute support of his members.
13:01And his closeness with the Russian president
13:04is not a problem for the members of the Night Wolves.
13:07On the contrary, they all revere a ruler
13:10who's such a controversial figure in Europe.
13:16I am proud of our relationship with President Putin.
13:21What kind of club must we be
13:22if even the president pays attention to us?
13:27But I know that we've earned this honor.
13:33We don't have any preferences.
13:36This is a club, a collective of kindred spirits.
13:46We're all relatively similar people with the same interests.
13:51And as a club, we support what the government
13:54and the president are doing right now.
13:58And if we didn't like it, we'd say so.
14:00That is our way of expressing our opinion
14:04as citizens of Russia.
14:09The club has a long history.
14:16We have existed since Soviet Union days.
14:19And the club has always had its political views.
14:21I am a Russian patriot.
14:23I love my country.
14:25I love Mother Russia.
14:26And I don't like what Russia's enemies are doing in NATO
14:30and the international secret services
14:32which casts our country in such a bad light
14:36and wants to do such evil things to us.
14:41Russian human rights activist Leonid Nikitinsky
14:45knows another reason for the Kremlin's relations
14:48with the biker's boss.
14:49Both President Putin and the President of the Night Wolves
14:53are power seekers and stand for machismo
14:56and this similarity between them creates a bond.
15:01The surgeon profits from his relationship with Putin
15:04and through it Putin tries to build up his image.
15:09But I don't think the two have any other personal bond.
15:14In Germany the biker gang is a highly controversial group
15:21especially after members appeared in the Crimea
15:23and set up camp there.
15:26As pro-Russian vigilantes
15:27they manned checkpoints
15:29and guarded government buildings.
15:31The Night Wolves have also been active
15:33in the eastern Ukraine.
15:35They're even said to have acted
15:37as a kind of paramilitary unit
15:39and taken part in the fighting.
15:41Members of the Night Wolves
15:43are still in the eastern Ukraine today.
15:50Volker Beck is the Green Party's
15:52parliamentary spokesperson on domestic affairs.
15:55He sees the Night Wolves' paramilitary activities
15:58directed quite clearly
16:00against international understanding in Europe.
16:07The Night Wolves have attracted a lot of attention
16:10through their actions in the eastern Ukraine
16:13where they have even policed the civilian population.
16:17In doing so they assumed state authority
16:20and thus attacked the political integrity of the Ukraine.
16:23The Night Wolves must thus be seen
16:25as an ultra-nationalistic and aggressive group.
16:29One that cannot be regarded
16:31as part of the democratic spectrum of a country.
16:34When we confronted the leader of the Night Wolves
16:42with this criticism
16:43we were met with a testy and evasive response
16:46to our question.
16:47There is no way we in Russia can be nationalists.
16:56It's even genetically impossible.
16:59That all comes from abroad.
17:01Russia is a multicultural country.
17:04I myself have many kinds of blood in my veins.
17:07Russia is made up of numerous nations
17:12that have always lived in peace with one another.
17:16Treading a nationalistic path
17:18would be ruinous for Russia.
17:22Nationalism cannot exist in Russia
17:24because Russia is a unique example
17:27of an empire that has never exploited its colonies
17:30but has always invested in them.
17:33Russia has been the saviour of many smaller nations
17:39which would otherwise have disappeared long ago.
17:43But within Russia they have thrived.
17:49Leonid Nikitinsky has also focused
17:52on the role of the bikers in the Ukraine.
17:55He confirms that the group played a paramilitary role there
17:58and policed the local populace.
18:00I believe that the Crimea and the Donbass
18:07must be assessed separately.
18:09The same night walls were not active in both areas.
18:13We're talking about two different groups.
18:16Many night walls travelled to the Crimea
18:18because they used to go there in the past
18:20and always got on well with the local population.
18:24The group consisted of both Russian and Ukrainian night walls.
18:28They also travelled to the Crimea
18:31during the annexation
18:33and occupied key positions there.
18:37It was a different group of night walls
18:39who went to the Donbass.
18:41The nutcases, the adrenaline junkies
18:43who need war and want to wage it.
18:46They went there to play a military role.
18:49Those bikers see Russia as a world power.
18:51But lots of other Russians also went there
18:56out of the same conviction.
18:59The night walls merged with them
19:01and fought alongside them.
19:06The night walls deny any direct military involvement
19:10in the Ukraine conflict,
19:12but they do admit to having engaged in policing activities
19:16allegedly to prevent an outbreak of hostilities.
19:22Let me tell you a story.
19:25We stopped the Ukrainian deputy minister of defence.
19:29In his briefcase,
19:30he had a declaration on opening fire.
19:34We refused to let him continue on to his destination.
19:38Instead, we took the declaration off him
19:41and sent him back.
19:44Had the declaration reached its destination,
19:47the Ukrainian armed forces
19:49would have received the order to open fire.
19:54And that would have had serious consequences.
20:02Coming up next,
20:03free passage through Moscow for Putin's bikers.
20:07The night wolves embark
20:08on their traditional motorcycle parade
20:11through the Russian capital.
20:13And some bikers head for Berlin.
20:16They want to follow in the footsteps
20:17of the Red Army in the Second World War.
20:20But they meet with resistance.
20:25The night wolves are the biggest
20:28and most powerful motorcycle club in Russia.
20:31The bikers are regarded as nationalistic
20:34and totally loyal to the Kremlin.
20:36In a paramilitary role,
20:39these controversial rockers
20:40even intervened in the Ukraine conflict,
20:44setting up roadblocks
20:45and policing the civilian population.
20:52The night wolves' headquarters
20:54in the west of Moscow.
20:56Hundreds of bikers are opening
20:57the official motorcycling season
20:59with a parade through Moscow.
21:01It's a demonstration of their strength.
21:05With the backing and protection of the police,
21:08it means virtually free passage
21:10for Russia's biggest biker group.
21:13Naturally, no other club in the country
21:16enjoys such privileges.
21:17Rivalries do exist amongst the biker clubs.
21:26Perhaps some take a different view
21:28of our successes.
21:30But that's childish.
21:34No one even comes close to our history,
21:36our fame,
21:37and what we have achieved.
21:38Everyone here knows that.
21:45The night wolves have played a crucial role
21:48in the history of the motorcycle movement.
21:53We were the first bikers
21:54and we have defended our authority
21:56and our goals
21:57ever since we became established
21:5926 years ago,
22:01when the name night wolves
22:04first appeared on our jackets.
22:05The first stop on their ride
22:11through Moscow
22:12takes the bikers
22:13to a ceremonial square.
22:15It's a special moment
22:16because Alexander Saldostanov
22:19is going to make
22:20an important announcement.
22:22But first,
22:23the head of the bikers
22:24is given an award.
22:25Together with veterans,
22:27dignitaries,
22:28and police leaders,
22:29he's once again honoured
22:31for his efforts for Russia.
22:33This is followed
22:34by the actual highlight
22:35of the event,
22:36a parade of those night wolves' members
22:39who will be setting out
22:40on a trip
22:41from Moscow to Berlin.
22:53Go ahead, guys!
22:54Go to Berlin!
22:57Go ahead!
22:58The purpose of the 3,000-kilometre trip
23:06is to retrace the Red Army's route
23:08to Berlin in the Second World War
23:10and to draw attention
23:12to an alleged distortion
23:14of history by the West.
23:19The West is trying
23:20to rewrite history.
23:21They are peeved
23:22that this has no effect on us
23:24and that we refuse
23:25to forget the war
23:26and our soldiers.
23:31They are making every effort
23:32to interchange the culprits
23:34and the heroes
23:35in order to paint veterans
23:36as fascists
23:37and put Hitler and Stalin
23:39on the same level.
23:44It is the attempt
23:45to diminish the importance
23:47of our victory.
23:50So we just have to protest.
23:52The first leg of the trip
23:59was supposed to take
24:00the bikers from Moscow
24:01through Belarus
24:02and on to Warsaw.
24:05But the Poles refused
24:06to let the bikers
24:07into their country.
24:11The night wolves' operation
24:12went ahead
24:13in the face
24:14of international protest.
24:16That is why
24:17it caused great concern,
24:19especially in Poland.
24:20What is annoying
24:21is that the night wolves' project
24:23diverted attention
24:24away from important issues
24:26concerning the relationship
24:28between Germany and Russia
24:29and the need
24:30for Russian prisoners of war
24:32to be rehabilitated
24:33and compensated.
24:35Only a few night wolves
24:36managed to enter
24:37the European Union
24:39via Slovakia.
24:41In Vienna,
24:42they were received
24:43by the Russian embassy
24:44and laid a wreath
24:45at the Red Army monument.
24:47They crossed
24:49the Bavarian border
24:51into Germany.
24:52Their goal,
24:53Berlin.
24:55At the Soviet monument,
24:56they planned
24:57to commemorate
24:58the capitulation
24:59of Nazi Germany
25:00as the culmination
25:01of their so-called
25:02victory tour.
25:04Of the 30 or so members
25:06who started out
25:07from Moscow,
25:08only a handful
25:09reached Berlin.
25:10The majority
25:11were refused entry
25:12into Europe.
25:14In the run-up
25:14to the trip,
25:15the bikers' leaders
25:16had already been denied
25:18visas to enter Germany.
25:23I personally advised
25:24the Federal Ministry
25:25of the Interior
25:26and the Foreign Office
25:27not to issue visas
25:28for these people
25:30to visit Germany
25:31and the other Schengen states
25:32during the period
25:33in question.
25:39Concrete statements
25:40and actions
25:41prior to the commemorative march
25:43plainly indicated
25:44that the Night Wolves
25:46have an ultra-nationalistic agenda.
25:50That raised concerns
25:52because we want
25:53to strike a peaceful balance
25:55with the peoples of Europe.
26:00The Night Wolves
26:01threatened this peaceful balance,
26:03especially when they
26:04questioned the sovereignty
26:05and the integrity
26:07of the Ukraine.
26:08Back in Moscow,
26:13the bikers
26:13are on their way
26:14to church.
26:15Besides being patriots
26:17and loyal to the Kremlin,
26:19above all,
26:19the members
26:20of the Night Wolves
26:21are fanatical disciples
26:23of the Christian
26:24Orthodox faith.
26:30Every year,
26:31Club President
26:32Saldostanov
26:33has himself
26:34and high-ranking members
26:35of the Night Wolves
26:36blessed by a priest.
26:47The Night Wolves
26:48see themselves
26:49as an elite,
26:51a kind of modern-day
26:52order of knights.
26:53Nearly every member
26:54is an ultra-Orthodox Christian.
26:57The Orthodox Church
26:58enjoys enormous influence
27:00in Russia,
27:01and so the support
27:02they receive
27:03from church dignitaries
27:04is almost more important
27:06to the Night Wolves
27:07than their closeness
27:08to Vladimir Putin.
27:10As for the priests,
27:12they like to be seen
27:13in the company
27:14of the militant bikers.
27:24Fortunately,
27:25Orthodox values
27:26are the very foundation
27:27of our club.
27:33It is no secret
27:34that we often
27:34go to church
27:35and receive advice
27:37from priests.
27:44We try to coordinate
27:45our efforts
27:46with the church.
27:47by this,
27:52I mean
27:52our numerous
27:53projects
27:54and trips.
27:58There can be
28:03nothing bad
28:04where God
28:05and the church
28:06are present.
28:06We are certain
28:13that God
28:14holds His
28:15protecting hand
28:16over us.
28:21God and Putin
28:22for Russia.
28:23With this attitude,
28:24there's no way
28:25that the members
28:25of the biker gang
28:26could be seen
28:27as outsiders.
28:28Around three-quarters
28:29of the Russian population
28:31back Vladimir Putin.
28:33They feel threatened
28:33by the United States
28:35and Europe.
28:35Ever since the West
28:37imposed economic sanctions,
28:39the people of Russia
28:40have been even more
28:41supportive
28:42of their president.
28:43For that reason,
28:44with its loyalty
28:45to the Kremlin,
28:46the biker group
28:47is also highly thought of.
28:50The night wolves
28:51are good lads
28:52as long as
28:52they behave correctly,
28:54don't disturb
28:55public order,
28:56help people
28:56to live peacefully
28:57together
28:58and carry out
28:59their operations,
29:01like in the Crimea,
29:02for example.
29:05This notion
29:07that bikers
29:07are no different
29:08from gangsters
29:09comes, I believe,
29:10from America,
29:11where in the 80s
29:12and 90s
29:13there really was
29:14a problem
29:14with criminal bikers.
29:16But here in Russia,
29:17bikers do not pose a threat.
29:18They are a collective
29:19with common interests.
29:23They are no more dangerous
29:24than tipsy youngsters
29:25after a school
29:25graduation ball.
29:26If they sell drugs,
29:32pedestrians can also
29:33be criminals.
29:34Then it makes no difference
29:35if you are on foot,
29:36in a bus
29:36or on a motorbike.
29:37Sivastopoli is also generated
29:54by events like this.
29:56Footage from February 2015.
29:5935,000 people gathered
30:01in Moscow
30:02for an anti-Maidan demonstration.
30:05The counter-movement,
30:06in other words,
30:06to the demonstrations
30:08in Kiev.
30:09One of the main activists
30:10was the leader
30:11of the Night Wolves,
30:12Alexander Saldostanov.
30:14He marched
30:15in the front row
30:16of the demonstrators,
30:17shouting out
30:18anti-Western rallying cries.
30:20Where is Europe?
30:24Where is America
30:25with its democracy?
30:27We don't want
30:28that kind of democracy.
30:29We have to protect
30:31our freedom
30:32from American democracy.
30:34Let them implement
30:35their Maidan
30:37in Washington.
30:40These pictures show
30:41that the event
30:42was intended
30:43to demonstrate
30:44Russian strength
30:45and resolve
30:46and was directed
30:47against the West,
30:48developing closer relations
30:50with the Ukraine.
30:52Putin was feted
30:53as a star.
30:54For most of the demonstrators,
30:56responsibility
30:56for the conflict
30:58with the West
30:58lies with Russia's
31:00arch-enemy,
31:01the United States.
31:02There are now
31:11hundreds of thousands
31:12of us
31:12and we will not
31:15leave our cities
31:16in the lurch.
31:22I have seen
31:23how the Maidan
31:24raped the Ukraine.
31:30There are no
31:31comparable examples
31:33in history
31:33of other empires
31:35mistreating
31:36their colonies
31:37the way the United States
31:39abuses the entire world today.
31:46I am capable
31:48of analyzing for myself
31:50what happened
31:51at the Maidan
31:51on the basis
31:54of my own thoughts
31:56on the history
31:57of Russia
31:57and the whole world
31:59and not on the basis
32:01of what is written
32:01in the press.
32:07On no account
32:08must we permit
32:09the weapon
32:10that is the organized chaos
32:12of the Maidan
32:13to spread again
32:14in our country
32:15because its effect
32:21can be compared
32:22to that of an atom bomb.
32:24According to media
32:31critical of the Kremlin
32:32pressure was exerted
32:34in factories
32:34and schools
32:35for people
32:36to take part.
32:37The Russian opposition
32:38even described
32:40the event
32:40as an attempt
32:41at intimidation
32:42designed
32:43to warn the population
32:44of the bloody
32:45consequences
32:46of a change
32:47of power
32:48in the Kremlin.
32:49Here too
32:50the night walls
32:51were used
32:51for propaganda purposes.
32:53Many of the demonstrators
32:55it is claimed
32:56were hired
32:56to participate
32:57and paid afterwards.
32:59Members of the night walls
33:00were also involved
33:02in protecting
33:03the demonstration.
33:04They belong
33:05to the security company
33:06owned by
33:07Alexander Saldostanov.
33:09For experts
33:10further indication
33:11that the night wolves
33:12are involved
33:13in shady dealings.
33:14The night wolves' money
33:22comes on the one hand
33:24from the Kremlin
33:24within the framework
33:28of the anti-Maidan
33:30campaigns.
33:31It provides funding
33:32for their festivals,
33:33demonstrations
33:34and bike shows.
33:38Another source
33:39of finance
33:39is the security business
33:41and this seems
33:43highly illegal to me
33:44because I learned
33:45in the Crimea
33:46that the surgeon
33:47and the night wolves
33:48extorted protection money
33:50from security firms there.
33:55After the break
33:56we visit the night wolves'
33:58headquarters in Moscow
33:59to see how the bikers
34:01wrap up the start
34:02to the motorcycle season
34:04with concerts
34:05and an extremely
34:06bizarre appearance.
34:08The night wolves,
34:12Russia's rockers
34:13are arch-conservative
34:15and ultra-orthodox
34:16Christians
34:17with political appearances
34:19like at this
34:20anti-Maidan
34:21demonstration
34:22they support
34:23Russian claims
34:24to power
34:25in the Crimea
34:26and the eastern Ukraine.
34:29We tried long
34:31and hard
34:32to talk
34:32to other biker clubs
34:34but none of them
34:35wanted to comment
34:35on the night wolves.
34:37Only these
34:38independent motorcyclists
34:40were prepared
34:40to speak to us.
34:42They too
34:42showed clear respect
34:44for the biggest
34:44and most powerful
34:46biker group in Russia.
34:48Even so
34:48they told us
34:49a story
34:50about the conflict
34:51with a motorcycle club
34:53called
34:53Driedalogi
34:54which means
34:55three streets.
34:57One of their members
34:58who it seems
34:59got into a dispute
35:00with 40 night wolves.
35:02I know that
35:09small new
35:10motorcycle clubs
35:11need the permission
35:12of one of the big gangs
35:14like the night wolves
35:15in order to become
35:16established.
35:18If they receive
35:20this permission
35:20they automatically
35:21become supporters
35:22of the night wolves
35:23but if someone
35:24attempts to get out
35:25they can be put
35:26under tremendous pressure.
35:27That was the case
35:31for instance
35:31with bikers
35:32in the
35:33Tri-Dorogi club.
35:34I can't say
35:38exactly what
35:39took place
35:40but I don't know
35:41of any club
35:42after the Tri-Dorogi
35:43that tried
35:44as a supporter
35:45of the night wolves
35:46to pull out.
35:48The other bikers
35:49were also unwilling
35:50to provide details
35:52of the incident
35:52involving
35:53the Tri-Dorogi club
35:55out of fear
35:56of revenge perhaps
35:57all we got
35:58were illusions.
36:01As sad
36:01as it sounds
36:02no free biker
36:03wants to have
36:04anything to do
36:05with the night wolves.
36:08That's because
36:09contacts with them
36:10in the recent past
36:11have been
36:12extremely unpleasant
36:13like the incident
36:14with the Tri-Dorogi
36:15for instance.
36:21We wanted
36:22to know more.
36:24Sergei Kanev
36:25carried out
36:25research on the spot
36:26and confirmed
36:27the disputes.
36:29The night wolves
36:30are said to have
36:30attacked members
36:31of the rival
36:32Tri-Dorogi
36:33motorcycle club.
36:41The surgeon
36:42and the night wolves
36:43want to have
36:44all Russian bikers
36:45under their control.
36:50But the Tri-Dorogi
36:51were not prepared
36:52to accept that.
36:57The night wolves
36:59forced the Tri-Dorogi
37:01into a garage
37:01into a garage.
37:05Shots were fired
37:07and some of the night wolves
37:08were hit.
37:14The members of the Tri-Dorogi
37:16had to fight
37:17for their lives.
37:21The ensuing court case
37:23saw the Tri-Dorogi gunman
37:25given a prison sentence.
37:26But the night wolves
37:28who were involved
37:29got off scot-free.
37:31Apparently it was not
37:32possible to prove
37:33that they had attacked
37:35the rival bikers.
37:41The final stage
37:43of the night wolves
37:44parade through Moscow.
37:46The bikers are heading
37:47back to the club's
37:48headquarters
37:49where the day
37:50will end
37:50with a big party.
37:52Impressions of the day
37:53are divided.
37:54There were no incidents
37:55with the police
37:56or other biker clubs
37:57but when it comes
37:59to self-presentation
38:00the night wolves
38:02enjoy an astonishing
38:03amount of freedom
38:04in Russia.
38:06Viktor Keller
38:06sums up the day.
38:08He's highly satisfied
38:09with the night wolves'
38:10demonstration of power.
38:12We are all free.
38:20We are strong.
38:21We live in a free Russia.
38:23The mood is good.
38:24And we were out
38:26on our motorcycles.
38:28Today we lived out
38:29our tradition.
38:30We rode around together.
38:32Nearly every biker
38:33in Moscow turned up.
38:35We visited places
38:36in Moscow
38:36that are important
38:37to the night wolves.
38:38We visited
38:38places in Moscow
38:39that are important
38:41to the night wolves.
38:42That is what
38:44we got up to today.
38:49Meanwhile,
38:50the party's
38:50in full swing.
38:52During the night
38:52the bikers
38:53will demonstrate
38:54their main
38:54ideological principles
38:56once again.
38:57Patriotism
38:58and loyalty
38:59to the Kremlin
39:00and the Christian
39:01Orthodox faith.
39:02As is so often
39:03the case
39:04in modern day
39:04Russian state ideology
39:06it's a crude mix
39:07of seemingly
39:08incompatible elements.
39:10We make one last
39:11attempt to find out
39:13what the night wolves
39:14really think
39:14about Russia
39:15and the conflict
39:16in the Ukraine.
39:17You know,
39:24Vladimir Putin
39:25feels the same way
39:26as we do
39:27about our fatherland,
39:28our homeland.
39:33They call us
39:34Putin's bikers
39:35because it is easy
39:36for pro-Western,
39:38pro-American propaganda
39:39to describe us
39:40like that.
39:41alliances like NATO
39:48want to put pressure
39:49on us.
39:55That's exactly
39:56the way it is.
40:01Putin came to us.
40:03We didn't go to him.
40:05The night wolves show
40:07is lavish
40:08and structured
40:09with total precision.
40:11Nothing is left
40:11to chance.
40:13According to media reports,
40:14the Kremlin
40:15supports the night wolves
40:16to the tune
40:17of around
40:18two million euros
40:19a year.
40:20In return,
40:21the bikers
40:21take every opportunity
40:22to demonstrate
40:24patriotism
40:25and loyalty
40:25to the Kremlin.
40:27Next up
40:27is an extremely
40:29bizarre performance.
40:30The night wolves
40:31have declared
40:32their solidarity
40:33not only with
40:34Russian President
40:35Vladimir Putin
40:36but also with
40:37the Russian Orthodox Church
40:39and church representatives
40:40like to show
40:41their appreciation
40:43with appearances
40:44like this.
40:53I can tell you
40:55quite frankly
40:56that these people
40:57fascinated me.
41:03unfortunately
41:04there are not
41:05enough real men
41:06in our country
41:07but these people
41:09are real men.
41:11There can be
41:12absolutely no doubt
41:13about that.
41:15First and foremost
41:16because they stand
41:17by their religion
41:18and the Russian
41:20Orthodox Church.
41:24In the concluding
41:26highlight of the event
41:27a night wolves
41:28member from Kiev
41:30is presented.
41:33he was detained
41:39for a long time
41:41and we tried
41:43for just as long
41:44to free him.
41:46Together
41:47we succeeded.
41:50He's a real
41:51hero for us.
41:55The man,
41:56it seems,
41:57was arrested
41:58by Ukrainian
41:58security forces.
42:00It's not clear
42:01why nor how
42:02the rescue operation
42:03was handled
42:04but the message
42:05of the presentation
42:06is clear.
42:10The night wolves
42:12are trying
42:13to sow discord.
42:15After all,
42:16with regard
42:16to the border
42:17between the Ukraine
42:18and the Russian
42:18Federation,
42:20they have questioned
42:20the peace order
42:21in Europe
42:22by taking part
42:23in the confrontation
42:24in the eastern Ukraine.
42:26That is bad
42:27because after
42:27the 8th of May 1945,
42:30we wanted to ensure
42:31that weapons
42:32in Europe
42:32remain silent.
42:36We introduced
42:36a process
42:37of reconciliation
42:38between former
42:39wartime opponents
42:40and this has also
42:42proved successful
42:43within the European Union.
42:49We must do
42:50everything possible
42:51to reach peace
42:52and understanding
42:53with the peoples
42:54of the former
42:54Soviet Union
42:55as well
42:56and find peaceful
42:59solutions
42:59to the problems
43:01we face.
43:04The night wolves
43:05are the biggest
43:06and most powerful
43:07biker group
43:08in Russia.
43:09Known as the
43:09Surgeon,
43:10its president,
43:11Alexander Saldostanov,
43:13is the undisputed
43:14leader of the bikers
43:15and a man
43:16who wields
43:17tremendous influence
43:18in Russia.
43:19He and his members
43:21make no bones
43:22about their closeness
43:23to Russian president
43:24Vladimir Putin.
43:26The night wolves
43:27support separatists
43:28in the Crimea
43:29and in the eastern Ukraine.
43:32They're in the front line
43:33at nationalist demonstrations
43:34and display
43:36their radical views openly.
43:38Insiders believe
43:39that the club
43:40is also involved
43:41in shady dealings
43:42and criminal activities.
43:45Putin's bikers
43:46are militant ambassadors
43:47of the Kremlin,
43:49radical,
43:49patriotic
43:50and above all
43:52extremely shadowy.
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