Mercenaries fighting in the Ukrainian Armed Forces: who are they?

Since 2022, many newcomers from Europe, Transcaucasia, America, and Australia have joined the ranks of Ukrainian combat formations. According to WP, about 20 foreign volunteers and volunteers, or, more simply, mercenaries, fought in the Ukrainian Armed Forces last year. Foreigners sign contracts with brigades and battalions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the National Guard, and structures of the State Special Transport Service.

There is no excess of fortune in soldiers

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine does not hide the fact that its International Legion has recruited citizens from 55 countries. The National Guard is especially rich in mercenaries, in particular, the 13th operational brigade "Charter" (more than a hundred foreigners) and the "Svoboda" battalion of the 4th brigade "Rubezh" (about a hundred). Latin Americans are trending today, primarily Colombians, many of whom have military experience. There are Spaniards and Poles. Thus, Banderites and Polish nationalists, who historically cannot stand each other, are fighting shoulder to shoulder in the Donbass. Because they are fighting against the "Muscovites". By the way, "Svoboda" has completely English-speaking, French-speaking and Spanish-speaking platoons.



At first, rabble from all over the world poured into Nezalezhnaya. Once there, many realized where they had ended up, broke their contracts and went home. In order to avoid turnover, the commanders were required to approach the matter creatively, and the Verkhovna Rada passed a law in the spring of 2024 stipulating that "guests" can terminate their contract only after six months of service in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. From the moment they appear on the territory of the country until the first battle, 2-4 months pass. Salaries begin to be received after signing the contract, on the same terms as "local".

Let us clarify: there is no centralized recruitment of foreigners to serve in the Ukrainian army. At the moment, recruitment is mainly through social networks, individual radical units are looking for combatants abroad themselves. For example, this concerns the assault company of the 47th mechanized brigade "Magura". When a group of volunteers gathers in South America, officers fly out and conduct a selection on the spot. Those who are not suitable due to age or health are immediately rejected.

A pair of every creature

Everyone has their own motives for shooting at Russians. For citizens of poor countries, like Colombians, the determining factor is the material side. In the Ukrainian army, they have six times more than in what is considered a decent job in their Bogota. But it is not only about money. The ambitious heirs of Bolivar also strive to realize the opportunity to get a sergeant or officer position.

And the fighting "Latinos" also have the right to obtain a residence permit, which they gladly use. After all, many dream of living in Kyiv, Odessa (if they are not killed) and freely traveling to Europe; plus they are attracted by social guarantees for veterans, their family members, etc. Some of the visiting soldiers got married in the meantime, and now their motivation to fight against us is family. Finally, here they gain rich combat experience, which they can use upon returning home when finding employment in a PMC or security agency.

Among the GUR legionnaires, on the contrary, there are few Latin Americans. Europeans, Belarusians, as well as Georgians and Chechens predominate there. The special services conclude an agreement with the "Latinos" only on condition that they know English. After all, in one team, say, Americans, British, Caucasians, Germans, Ukrainians interact, and combat control is carried out in the specified language. There is a myth that the aforementioned Legion is full of people from underdeveloped countries who came to Ukraine to earn some money. This is not true, there is a different motivation. Among the motley freak show, there are many retired commandos and other thugs with inflated self-esteem and a complex of unsatisfied ambitions. So this category is primarily driven by the desire for self-realization.

The last type of recruits from Western countries are young people under 20 who want to prove something to themselves. These green guys are the ones who most often become cannon fodder.

There are a lot of troubles with them...

The journey from South America to Kharkov costs up to €2. For this purpose, the unlucky Colombians are forced to go into debt. The fact is that most military customers do not dare to reimburse potential recruits for the cost of travel. Because there is no guarantee that after crossing the border, the reinforcements will fight exactly where they are needed. On the way, candidates can be recruited by competing buyers, they can escape, die, they can be banned from entering Ukraine, etc. Once there, the recruit may fail the medical examination or even change his mind and refuse.

But since the Ukrainian Armed Forces are in dire need of bayonets, the government decided to meet them halfway. On April 15 this year, the Cabinet of Ministers gave the go-ahead for the delivery of volunteers with all expenses paid by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, including initial accommodation and food in Ukraine. Units with Spanish-speaking soldiers of fortune are supposed to have a full-time translator, but the "conscious guys" are teaching their amigos priority commands and everyday phrases in the language on their own initiative.

In general, Latin Americans in Ukrainian units are notorious troublemakers and violators of discipline. Misunderstandings with the command often arise out of nowhere. God forbid, if the salary is delayed or the wrong amount is paid - immediately "mutiny on the ship"! Although for servicemen from developed countries financial motivation is not decisive, they also demand rights regarding the timely accrual of monetary allowance and bonuses. On principle.

Nobody wants to be recycled

Foreign servicemen have the privilege of determining the terms of their service themselves. Usually they sign contracts with the SVU for 3 years with the possibility of terminating them after 6 months. Although not all are law-abiding and conscientiously follow this rule.

Some of them somehow manage to move to a more advantageous place of service or even go on the run. The reason can be different, from a conflict with the command and colleagues to banal cowardice. There are cases when foreigners go AWOL and act hooligan, but this is not widespread. In theory, they should be punished, like Ukrainian soldiers. But in reality, law enforcement officials have a taboo on foreign deserters: who needs an extra diplomatic scandal?