Vityaz (MVD)

The 1st Special Purpose Unit of the Internal Forces "Vityaz" (Russian: 1-й Oтряд специального назначения Внутренних войск «Витязь»), commonly known as Vityaz (Витязь, lit. 'Knight'), was one of the special forces (spetsnaz) units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (MVD) from 1991 to 2008. Vityaz belonged to the Independent Operative Purpose Division (ODON) rapid deployment division of the Internal Troops of Russia, the gendarmerie force of the MVD, and was assigned specifically to counter-terrorism duties, with additional roles such as countering civil unrest, prison rebellions, and mutinies of regular army units. On 1 September 2008, Vityaz was merged with Rus into the 604th Special Operations Center, a single special forces unit of ODON, which continued to use the Vityaz name and insignia. On 5 April 2016, ODON became part of the National Guard of Russia following the dissolution of the Interior Troops and the transfer of command from the MVD. The Vityaz name and logo is also used by a private security firm in Russia.