The Baisangur Benoevsky Rosgvardiya battalion, formed for participation in the war against Ukraine, has effectively come under the supervision of 18-year-old Adam Kadyrov, the son of the head of Chechnya. According to Novaya Gazeta Europe, the unit mostly remains in Grozny and hardly takes part in combat, unlike the Sheikh Mansur battalion, which was created at the same time.
Different terms for the two units
Both battalions began to be formed in 2023, but the service conditions were different from the outset. The Sheikh Mansur battalion was created as a volunteer unit of the Defense Ministry: recruits were accepted without strict limits on age, health, or criminal record, and were offered four-month contracts.
The Baisangur Benoevsky battalion, by contrast, was formed as an elite Rosgvardiya unit. Candidates had to meet age and education requirements. The unit received several hectares of land in central Grozny, new barracks, weapons, a vehicle fleet, and its own training grounds. According to the newspaper, its material resources are markedly better than those of Chechen Defense Ministry units.
The battalion commander became Bekhan Chalayev, the younger brother of security official Zamid Chalayev, who is considered one of Ramzan Kadyrov’s closest associates. Novaya Gazeta Europe reports that Adam Kadyrov regularly visits the fighters and has friendly ties with the commander. The battalion’s vehicles carry “DUSTUM 95” plates — the call sign of the Chechen leader’s son, previously used by his father.
One battalion was sent to war, the other stayed in Chechnya
In November 2023, Ramzan Kadyrov said that both units were ready to be sent to Ukraine. The Sheikh Mansur battalion reached the front in December of that year and, the paper says, has taken part in combat ever since. The Baisangur Benoevsky battalion remained in Chechnya, where its servicemen continued training.
The outlet found information on only two trips by the battalion’s fighters to Ukraine. In the spring of 2024, a group of 20 men led by Bekhan Chalayev was sent to the Zaporizhzhia region, but their participation in combat could not be established. In August 2025, the battalion visited the front again, this time without its commander. After November 2023, Ramzan Kadyrov did not report either the unit’s involvement in combat or any plans to send it to the front.
The battalion’s servicemen signed contracts for terms of at least one year and received a federal payment of 195,000 rubles. Such payments were intended for those entering service to take part in the war and were not supposed to go to those who remained at their permanent base.