By Bond Robertson 
Last week, special police from New York and San Antonio, Texas, participated in the “UAE SWAT Challenge” in Dubai. The competition is a kind of unofficial Olympics for special police around the world.
There, American police officers competed against emergency forces from Canada, Turkey and Hungary, among other countries.
and brutal security forces from Belarus and Chechnya, The Guardian reports.
Accused of war crimes
The so-called Akhmat Forces from the Russian Republic of Chechnya are a paramilitary force. It is controlled by Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov, and is described as Kadyrov's “private army”.
In addition to using brutal means such as torture to suppress any form of dissent in Chechnya, Akhmat's forces are also believed to have participated in death squads.
Kadyrov's “special army” is also fighting in Ukraine, where he is accused of committing a number of war crimes.
– I'm not joking
Almaz's forces from Belarus belong to the same dictatorial wing.
On paper, they are an anti-terrorism unit, but in practice, Belarus's president, Alexander Lukashenko, has used Almaz's forces to persecute and suppress the opposition – and the rest of the population – in the country.
They were particularly active during large-scale demonstrations against the regime in 2020, following Lukashenko's sham election victory.
Towards resolution
Professor Mark Galeotti, one of the leading Western experts in the field of Russian security services, criticizes the competition of special police from the West against the Chechen and Belarusian security forces.
– I am not aware of any similar cases in which the American police participated in competitions with teams from Russia, even with a Chechen unit actively fighting in Ukraine. “I expected the US authorities to ask the police forces to withdraw voluntarily,” Galeotti tells The Guardian.
Putin's soldiers in a heated debate
He believes that the participation of the Americans gives legitimacy to the competition, and thus the participation of the Chechen Akhmat forces and the Belarusian Almaz forces.
-This is a gift package for Grozny and Moscow. At best, the United States appears incompetent, and at worst completely eager to ignore its own guidelines, Galeotti says, referring to numerous US sanctions against Russia and Belarus.
“Friendly competition”
Special police in New York and Canada did not respond to The Guardian's questions about this case.
But recently, the NYPD took to X, formerly known as Twitter, and thanked Dubai Police for hosting the contest.
“In a friendly competition, our emergency team participated in the SWAT Challenge and showcased their skills and techniques.” Police books.
Police in San Antonio responded to The Guardian in a statement:
He threatens Sweden: – When we finish with Ukraine…
He added: “Each participating country has its own geopolitical history, and this is not taken into account in calculating the participating teams. The goal of such events is to give the best in the world an opportunity to show their abilities in the spirit of competition, in the same way as the Olympic Games.”
Russian and Belarusian athletes are allowed to participate in the Olympic Games in Paris this year, but only as neutral athletes. They cannot have ties to the country's security, defense or intelligence services or openly support the Russian war in Ukraine.
Pays travel and accommodation costs
Dubai, which is part of the United Arab Emirates, has hosted the “UAE SWAT Challenge” five times in the past.
The oil-rich country will reportedly pay a significant portion of the costs that come with participating, including travel, food and housing.
The son (15 years old) gets a managerial position
About $260,000, or more than 2.7 million kroner, is awarded in the various competitions, and $80,000 is reserved for the overall winner.
Last year, Ahmed's Chechen forces were victorious. Also later, special police from New York were involved, according to The Guardian.
Akhmat's forces were led this year by Adam Kadyrov (16 years old), the son of Ramzan Kadyrov, who holds a high position in his father's personal guard.