Ultranationalists (Original)

"It's the Ultranationalists. They're killing the villagers."

- Russian Loyalist in "Safehouse"

The Ultranationalists are a revolutionary political party and armed organization in Russia who wish to return the country back to what it once was during the days of the U.S.S.R., specifically a Leninist/Stalinist regime. They believe that the Russian Federation does not have the best interests of the Russian people at heart, siding with Western interests both philosophically and economically, which they perceive to be destroying or weakening Russia. The Ultranationalists idealize the old Soviet state out of a sense of wounded national pride, though their actual commitment to Communist political and economic ideals are left rather vague. In this mad crusade for what they consider to be national restoration, the Ultranationalists consider the powers of the Western world, specifically the United States of America and the United Kingdom, to be major obstacles in their path, as well as any Russians who do not support their aims. Their funds come from several criminal activities such as human trafficking, drug trafficking, hijackings and kidnappings. They are also supplied in weapons by several arms dealer around the world, such as Alejandro Rojas or Imran Zakhaev himself, who was an arms dealer before becoming the Party's leader. In 2016, Ultranationalists seized the government of Russia, and have markedly increased their power and military strength.

The Ultranationalists used to be based in the southern edge of Russia, close to central Asia and the border to Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. Their influence extends far beyond Russia's borders, with an airfield hidden in Kazakhstan, several contacts in the Middle East, and one known contact in Brazil.

In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare the Ultranationalist appeared as guerrilla style terrorist wearing a makeshift assortment of gas masks, camo jackets and other gear. In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 the Ultranationalist come in three varieties: snow gear, full military gear, and guerrilla gear.

In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, two separate groups of Ultranationalists are encountered: Those loyal to the government and President Boris Vorshevsky, and those loyal to Vladimir Makarov, an associate of Zakhaev and political extremist.

Leadership
The original political head of the Russian Ultranationalist Party was Imran Zakhaev, a former arms dealer who operated out of Ukraine, selling spent uranium fuel rods from the Chernobyl nuclear reactor (whether this was to provide funds for his Party, simply to enrich himself or for some other purpose is never made clear). He was reported killed after losing his arm to a .50 BMG round fired by a British sniper team, but resurfaced to head the Ultranationalist Party during the Russian Civil War. His son, Victor Zakhaev, was commander of the Ultranationalist military forces on the ground and took orders directly from Imran. After the deaths of both Victor and Imran, the Ultranationalists were left leaderless.

Before and during the events of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the Ultranationalist Party is split itself, with some loyal to the extremist Vladimir Makarov and others loyal to the president, Boris Vorshevsky. Because of his extreme tactics, Makarov was pushed out of the inner circle of the party. He is for the most part unaffiliated with the Ultranationalists politically though it seems he has taken control of the military force and extending some of the Party's influence into terrorism. Prior to his excommunication from the Party he had some influence in the government, as shown by clippings found in his safehouse, he directed blame for the death of the now hailed Zakhaev on Bravo Team, including the incarcerated John Price.

Named personnel

 * Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
 * Imran Zakhaev - Leader of the Ultranationalist Party - KIA
 * Victor Zakhaev - Commander of the Armed Forces, son of Imran - KIA
 * The First Horseman - Associate of the Zakhaevs and Khaled Al-Asad - Status unknown, assumed KIA
 * Sasha - POW guard in "Blackout" - KIA
 * Viktor - POW guard in "Blackout" - KIA
 * Associates of the Party
 * Khaled Al-Asad - One of the Four Horsemen; launched a coup with help from Imran Zakhaev - KIA


 * Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
 * Loyal to the Russian Federation:
 * Boris Vorshevsky - President of the Russian Federation - Alive
 * Petrov - Officer at the air base in "Cliffhanger" - Likely KIA
 * Loyal to Vladimir Makarov:
 * Vladimir Makarov - "The Shadow of Zakhaev", known for extremist and terrorist actions, removed from political power - Alive
 * Alexei Borodin - Member of a terrorist squad that fought under Makarov, actually undercover CIA agent Joseph Allen (discovered in "No Russian") - KIA
 * Viktor - Member of Makarov's squad in the terrorist assault on the airport - Alive
 * Lev - Member of Makarov's squad in the terrorist assault on the airport - KIA
 * Kiril - Member of Makarov's squad in the terrorist assault on the airport - KIA
 * Anatoly - Extracts Makarov's squad from the terrorist assault on the airport - Alive
 * Associates of the Party
 * Alejandro Rojas - Makarov's arms dealer - Alive/KIA (depending on player's actions)

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare conflict
The Ultranationalists have been engaged in open warfare with forces loyal to the Russian Federation for some time prior to the start of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. While their greatest influence appears to be in the former Soviet states in the Causcaus Mountains and Central Asia, they present a clear threat to the Russian state and have designs on taking over the rest of the former Soviet Union. Aside from fighting in Russia, the Ultranationalists have a presence in Al-Asad's unnamed Middle-Eastern nation, providing them with arms and equipment including at least one nuclear warhead (and the attempted delivery of a second warhead, as shown in "Crew Expendable"). They also have a presence in Azerbaijan. They are the ones behind Al-Asad's rise to power, and later become the primary antagonists during the last two acts of the game.

The Ultranationalists appear to have complete disdain for the Geneva Conventions or any of the rules of war, using very brutal methods to achieve their military and political goals. These include the massacre of entire villages, making no distinction between civilian and military targets, the use of infantry and rocket attacks to deliberately kill civilians, torture and a variety of other acts classified as war crimes. This is done to spread fear among the Russian population and force them to submit to the Ultranationalists. With the death of Imran Zakhaev, news stations had reported that a leadership struggle had taken place, suggesting the Party was close to collapse prior to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Al-Asad was executed in Azerbaijan by Captain Price after detonating a nuclear bomb in the Middle East, killing much of the coalition forces. After the execution, the Ultranationalists attempted to retake Al-Asad's body, and Bravo Six escaped from the village. The SAS/Marine task force planned to lure Imran Zakhaev out of hiding by capturing his son, Viktor Zakhaev. Once he was cornered, Viktor commited suicide and Zakhaev retaliated by taking control of an ICBM launch facility in the Altay Mountains and launched the warheads to impact on the US East Coast. The effect would kill nearly 41,000,000 civilians. The joint force of SAS/Marines assaulted the launch facility and stopped the countdown. As the task force attempted to flee, the Ultranationalists cut off their exit on a bridge, and the ensuing battle led to the death of Zakhaev at the hands of Soap MacTavish. It was soon rumored that the Ultranationalist Party had apparently collapsed after the death of Zakhaev, with the News media citing a "leadership struggle".

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 conflict
It was implicated that in August 2016 the Ultranationalists defeated the Loyalists after The Russian Civil War. Five years after the loss of Imran Zakhaev, a former associate of his named Vladimir Makarov assumed control of underground Ultranationalist forces, while Ultranationalist Boris Vorshevsky was elected President of Russia. Makarov has been described as a violent, almost psychotic person with his own ambitions, and as such was forced out of the inner circle by Vorshevsky. This angered Makarov, and denounced Vorshevsky and other political officials as true Ultranationalists. Zakhaev had held Makarov in check while alive, but with him gone, Makarov was left free to control portions of the Party and further his own agenda. Makarov portrayed Zakhaev as a martyr to gain support for his organization among the Russian populace, and has rebuilt the Ultranationalist Party and privatized the Russian military with the help of contacts in Rio de Janiero, Russia and Afghanistan. Despite their military defeat, the Ultranationalists soon won in the political arena and in the field of public opinion, subverting the state they had once tried to conquer openly. Ultranationalist ideology has become increasingly popular amongst ordinary Russians, to the extent that the elder Zakhaev has been declared the "Hero of the New Russia" by popular acclaim, and much of the Russian state now supports their aims, even if they are not officially members of the group. The military strength of the group has waned considerably under Makarov since Zakhaev's defeat, and the Ultranationalists no longer deploy armies in the field as during the Russian Civil War, shifting their tactical focus over to guerrilla raids and terror attacks over direct combat. although they do seem to have some connections with the OpFor in Afghanistan.. The official Russian military however is as strong as ever, going so far to invade the U.S. when it is discovered that a U.S. CIA agent played a part in a terrorist attack on Zakhaev International Airport in Moscow. Prior to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the CIA has been keeping an eye on Makarov, as he'd committed numerous terrorist incidents in Europe and has worldwide media attention, and they placed an agent, Joseph Allen (under the alias Alexei Borodin), amongst Makarov's ranks. Amongst the actions of the Ultranationalists under Makarov is a bloodbath at the Russian airport, in which hundreds of civilians are gunned down by an armed squad led by Makarov himself. Unbeknownst to Allen, Makarov is aware of his true identity as a CIA agent. It can be inferred that this information came from one General Shepherd, an U.S. Army general who wanted revenge for the nuclear attack five years earlier, and decided an all-out war with Russia was the best way to achieve that. At the scene of the attack, Makarov kills Allen and leaves his body, which causes the Russian government to blame the U.S. What at first appears to be a rash of terrorist incidents propels into a horrific war culminating in an attack on US soil, with Washington D.C. burning and the White House under siege. The U.S. Army Rangers manage to drive them out of D.C. It is unknown what happens to the Ultranationalist Party after the climax of the game, but assuming things are still progressing the same way the Ultranationlists are still in conflict with the United States military as no obvious conclusion is given from the game. Also due to Makarov being alive it is most likely the war is continuing. According to one U.S. Army Ranger, they are "gonna burn [Moscow] down when [they] get there."

These newspaper articles describe some of the actions taken by Makarov's Ultranationalists:

Equipment
They utilize many weapons of a conventional armed force, including air and armor assets. Under Zakhaev in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the Ultranationalist militants are fairly well organized and equipped for an unofficial military entity. Primarily, the Ultranationalists use Soviet-era weaponry such as the AK-47, RPD, Mi-24 and T-72. They also have access to nuclear weaponry and late in the game take over an ICBM Launch Facility in the Altay Mountains. In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, under Makarov, the Ultranationalist arsenal is extremely diverse, as several NATO weapons (and others) are given out to soldiers, such as the FAMAS, UMP .45, and M240. Almost all of the new additions to the arsenal are weapons only just added in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. As Makarov has more international contacts, he can gather resources from across the world. The main Russian Army under Vorshevsky, however, has a peculiarly non-Russian arsenal. In place of more modern Russian arms such as the AK-74M or Saiga-12, they use mostly European arms.

The full list of Ultranationalist arms and vehicles in the single player campaign is as follows:

Small Arms

 * AK-47
 * AKS-74U
 * AUG HBAR
 * G3
 * G36C
 * SVD
 * M4A1
 * Mini-Uzi
 * MP5
 * RPD
 * SCAR-H
 * M60E4
 * W1200
 * M1014
 * RPG-7
 * M9
 * Desert Eagle
 * USP .45
 * Skorpion
 * P90
 * FIM-92 Stinger
 * FAMAS
 * SPAS-12
 * UMP45
 * Vector
 * Striker
 * M240
 * FAL
 * WA2000
 * F2000
 * TAR-21
 * PP-2000
 * MG4
 * L86 LSW
 * M72 L.A.W (Unused, seen on character models)

Vehicles

 * Mi-8
 * Mi-24
 * Mi-28
 * UAZ-469
 * BMP-2
 * T-72
 * BM-21
 * Ural-4320
 * Snowmobile
 * BTR-80
 * MiG-29
 * Humvee

Multiplayer
In the multiplayer mode of both Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the Ultranationalist faction is represented by the Russian Spetsnaz. This is because according to the game's story, several Russian military divisions sided with Imran Zakhaev's organization, while the rest of the Russian military opposed him and remained loyal to the true government. The troops that joined the Ultranationalists likely included several members of the Spetsnaz, while the opposing soldiers became the Russian Loyalists. In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the official Spetsnaz are Ultranationalist, because of the Ultranationalists' rise to power. This explains the change in gear and attire between the two games, from guerrilla appearance to official soldiers.

Trivia

 * The Ultranationalist soldiers in GP-5 gas masks still have the plug in the filter, which would not allow them to breathe.
 * In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the Ultranationalists have a few fairly new German weapons, which is unusual being that they are still in use by the Bundeswehr, such as the MP5, G36C, and G3, although the G3 is an exception as its a surplus weapon.
 * The Ultranationalists seem to use more than one camouflage pattern at a time, such as combining woodland and arctic camouflages.
 * Some of the Ultranationalists troops in "Loose Ends" wear turquoise berets of Russian Airborne forces.
 * The Ultranationalists are similar to that of the real Russian party known as the "National Bolshevik Party" which practice a form of Pan-Russian nationalism, while emphasizing the teachings of Stalinist ideologies. It should not be confused with the officially recognized Communist party of Russia, which retains its Marxist-Lenin ideas and is a lot less radical.
 * In multiplayer, Kamarov is the announcer which would not be true because he is a Loyalist. It could be that he is the Spetsnaz GRU unit.
 * The Ultranationalist soldiers in the general armed forces wear helmets, gas masks, ski masks, night vision goggles, balaclavas and red camouflage (some of the soldiers wear brown uniforms sometimes) which makes them look like modern day soviet army troops.
 * The Ultranationalist black star in a red background flag is similar to the EZLN's flag, but with reversed colors and no logo in the star. The EZLN is a revolutionary movement in Mexico that fights against the Mexican government and NAFTA.