Vladimir Zhoga

Vladimir Artyomovich Zhoga (, ; 26 May 1993 – 5 March 2022), also known by his nom de guerre Vokha , was a separatist who commanded the Sparta Battalion, a pro-Russian separatist force that is involved in the Russo-Ukrainian War. He was also the son of the Russian political military commander, Artem Zhoga.

On 5 March 2022, he was killed in action during battle of Volnovakha in the eastern Ukraine during the invasion of Ukraine.

Biography Vladimir Zhoga was born in Donetsk in on 26 May 1993. Soon after his birth, the Zhoga family moved to Sloviansk where he grew up. His parents separated early in his life. At the age of fourteen, he started helping out his father, who at the time owned a small business. Until 2014, Zhoga had no interest in enlisting in the military, and instead tried to study at a technical school He graduated from the Slavic Vocational Art Lyceum as a painter-plasterer.

Zhoga described himself as apolitical until the Revolution of Dignity in 2014; he came to see the events as a "coup" and threat to his home. Within his circle of acquaintances, no one supported the Euromaidan, hardening his views. The unit is loyal to the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), one of the self-proclaimed breakaway states located in the Donbas. Zhoga was a close confidant and the personal driver of the Sparta Battalion's commander Arsen Pavlov As part of the Sparta Battalion, Zhoga was accused of war crimes including the murder and torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war. The Ukrainian news site Glavcom alleged that the accident had been an assassination attempt by a Russian soldier (codenamed "Ermine") who acted as advisor to the Sparta Battalion. The two had reportedly clashed on several occasions, as "Ermine" argued that Zhoga was too young to serve as militia leader. In contrast, Fashik Donetsky, an anti-separatist blogger from Donetsk, claimed that Zhoga had been drunk during the incident.

At one point after the start of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Zhoga challenged Ukrainian professional boxer Wladimir Klitschko to a duel after the latter announced that he had volunteered for the Ukrainian Army. A pro-Russian source said he died while trying to evacuate civilians. Journalist Nicholas Potter argued that the portrayal of Zhoga as a victim was "cynical", considering that the Sparta Battalion was the aggressor in the battle. while Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded him the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. Komsomolskaya Pravda war correspondent and propagandist Alexander Kots wrote a "glowing obituary" for Zhoga which was characterized by Al Jazeera as part of Russian propaganda efforts. Vladimir's father Artem succeeded him as commander of the Sparta Battalion.