The Russian military said Friday that some 7,000 “foreign mercenaries” from 64 countries have arrived in Ukraine since the start of the conflict and nearly 2,000 have been killed.
“Our lists, as of June 17, include mercenaries and weapons specialists from a total of 64 countries. Since the start of the special military operation, 6,956 have arrived in Ukraine, 1,956 have already been eliminated,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement. Russian defense.
According to the authorities, another 1,779 have already left Ukraine.
The Russian ministry says that Poland is the main European country from which the fighters originate, followed by Romania and the United Kingdom.
He also pointed out that there is a significant contingent from the United States, Canada and Georgia.
Since the beginning of Moscow’s intervention in Ukraine on February 24, thousands of foreign volunteers, most of them Europeans, have arrived in the country to help the kyiv forces.
Russia labels these fighters “mercenaries,” using a pejorative term that implies their motivation is financial.
Pro-Russian separatists sentenced three of these fighters, two British and one Moroccan, to death.
