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The Russian Ministry of Defense once rarely disclosed a shocking figure in a report: Foreign mercenaries in the Ukrainian army have come from 84 countries, with a total of 13,387 people.
By 2025, this number will continue to rise, and the number of foreign soldiers in the Ukraine military has exceeded 18,000.
This conflict, originally known as a "special military operation," has evolved into a global mercenary arena, with money, politics and survival needs closely intertwining all forces.
In August, Ukrainian President Zelensky expressed his anger at the appearance of large numbers of Asian and African faces on Russian military positions while inspecting the front.
He then accused countries such as China, Pakistan and Tajikistan of shipping mercenaries to Russia on social media.
The accusation quickly sparked a diplomatic wave, and the Pakistani government firmly denied the statement, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry reiterated that "Chinese citizens' involvement in foreign armed conflicts is a violation of law."
However, the reality is that the number of foreign mercenaries in the Ukrainian army is far greater than that of Russia. According to data from the Ukrainian military, as of August 2025, foreign soldiers in the Ukrainian army have come from 72 countries, 40% of which are from Latin America.
Unemployed young people from Colombia, Brazil, Argentina and other countries flock to Ukraine, because monthly salaries here far exceed what they can earn in South America.
Vitaly Ganchev, head of the Russian administration in Kharkiv Oblast, told RIA Novosti that the Ukraine troops in Kharkiv Oblast include mercenaries from different countries, including British officers.
He said: “The Ukrainian mercenaries have a large number of international recruits from Georgia, the Baltic states and Poland, with British officers in their ranks as expert advisors.”
The Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly pointed out that the Kiev regime uses foreign mercenaries as “meat shields” and that the Russian military will continue to destroy them throughout Ukraine.
Those who came to war for money admitted in numerous interviews that the Ukraine military did not coordinate their actions well and had little chance of survival in combat.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova previously stressed that the West has consolidated its position as a participant in the Ukraine conflict and sent mercenaries to participate in the war.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that some countries may send troops to Ukraine in the name of mercenaries.In September 2025, Russian media revealed that at least 20,000 foreign mercenaries were involved in the war in Ukraine, most of them from NATO countries.
This means that the nature of the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield is rapidly shifting from agent war to direct confrontation.
Intelligence from Russian security services shows that foreign mercenaries currently fighting in Ukraine include not only Colombia and Venezuela in South America, but also El Salvador and Nicaragua in Central America.
More importantly, retired soldiers and even active soldiers from NATO's eastern flank countries such as Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria changed their skins and directly turned into mercenaries to participate in the war.
TASS quoted a Russian military intelligence officer, code-named “Dondos,” as saying the men were not merely for money, but active soldiers directly disguised as international regiments, fighting alongside the Ukrainian army.
They are trained by the NATO system and use NATO-provided weapons. They are not so much mercenaries as regular troops with their flags removed.
According to international law, mercenaries are not treated as prisoners of war and can be directly executed once captured.However, on the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield, this provision has almost become empty talk, because both sides are using mercenaries in large numbers but refuse to recognize their legitimacy.
Ukraine packages foreign fighters into “international volunteer forces,” while Russia claims they are merely “military advisers.”
This vague definition makes mercenaries the most vulnerable group in the war, neither enjoying state protection nor the treatment of regular army.
When a Colombia mercenary was killed by a Russian missile in the Donetsk Forest, his family did not even know that he had traveled to Ukraine.
Despite Zelensky's high-profile condemnation of Russia's use of mercenaries, the number of foreign fighters in Ukraine's own army is more than ten times that of Russia.
This double standard has gradually weakened the international community's sympathy for Ukraine. The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting in July 2025 to discuss the issue of mercenaries, but ultimately failed to reach any effective resolution.
According to a captured British officer, NATO countries have shipped large numbers of professional military personnel to Ukraine through private military companies, such as Britain’s G4S, but they have not been officially recognised.
The "international regiment" on the battlefield is not a piece of iron. Latino-American mercenaries in the Ukrainian army often fail to communicate effectively with commanders due to language barriers, resulting in chaos in tactical execution.
At the same time, Central Asian soldiers in the Russian army are often grouped separately due to cultural differences and become the primary targets of Russian firepower.
Russian presidential press secretary Peskov said on September 15 that NATO is fighting with Russia and that no additional evidence is needed that NATO has actually been involved in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, providing indirect and direct assistance to the Ukrainian side.
Therefore, it is perfectly possible to say that NATO is fighting with Russia.This statement clearly shows Russia’s stance on NATO’s involvement in the conflict.
On September 12, Kremlin spokesman Peskov lightly announced a "suspension" of Russia-Ukraine negotiations.
These two words have become the most dangerous signals in more than two years, indicating that the war that has devoured hundreds of thousands of lives is slipping into a darker abyss.
In fact, the real storm had begun less than ten days ago. After taking part in the 80th anniversary parade in Beijing, Putin told the world that he was "ready to end the war by force."
The nine words exploded the global financial markets like a bomb, causing oil prices to rise, and the leaders called for emergency calls.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict reveals a trend in modern warfare: warfare is being "outsourced."As countries are reluctant to let their citizens die, more and more countries are choosing to hire foreign fighters.
And those unemployed young people from poor countries see the battlefield as a “high-paying work” path, even if it costs lives.
After the war, these experienced veterans are most likely to be recruited by private military companies and active in places such as Africa, the Middle East, and even the Taiwan Strait.
Russia may also follow the Wagner model, build more shadow regiments and widespread agents warfare.This conflict has long gone beyond the scope of Russia and Ukraine, turning into a “global war” driven by money.
When the last mercenary falls, perhaps the real winner is not either side on the battlefield, but those forces that manipulate the war economy behind the scenes...
References:
1. "Russia releases data on foreign mercenaries fighting for Ukraine after the outbreak of the conflict: estimated at least 13,387, of which approximately 5,962 died" 2024-03-15 11:16:03 | Source: Global Network
2. "German mercenaries who went to Ukraine to fight: People will die, no one will come out alive" 2022-03-18 11:01 | Source: Observer.com