A battalion of former Ukrainian soldiers has volunteered to fight for Moscow and will join the Russian forces, RIA Novosti reports. The unit has undergone the necessary training and is equipped for combat, the group’s commander told RIA Novosti.
Russian forces fighting on the front lines of the conflict with Kiev will soon be reinforced with a battalion consisting of former Ukrainian soldiers, RIA Novosti reported on Friday, citing the unit’s commander. The members either surrendered or were captured in battle before deciding to switch sides, according to the media outlet.
Named after Bogdan Khmelnitsky – a Ukrainian historical figure who started an uprising against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 17th century and led Ukraine to join Russia – the battalion has undergone three weeks of training at a Russian base, its commander, Andrey Tishenko, said. At the end of their training, they will officially take the oath, he added.
The former Ukrainian soldiers have already been equipped for battle, Tishenko said, adding that they received their uniforms, protective gear, and weapons before the training even started. The soldiers received guidance from battle-hardened, experienced instructors, he added.
The unit members told Sputnik news agency that they joined voluntarily after receiving Russian citizenship. TASS reported in March that around 70 former Ukrainian troops applied for Russian passports and expressed their wish to fight for Moscow. The size of the newly formed unit has not been made public.
According to Tishenko, the battalion will join the Kaskad operational-combat tactical group, which is under the command of the acting interior minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Colonel General Aleksey Dikiy. The location of its first combat deployment remains unknown.
The first reports regarding plans to form the unit surfaced in the media in February. In March, RT interviewed former Ukrainians soldiers who volunteered for the Russian Army, as around 100 Ukrainian POWs from Donbass reportedly wished to do so.
One of them told RT that he decided to volunteer because he has a family in a city in Donbass. “I wanted us to have peace… a future,” he said, adding that he and his family “could not have had it under the banner” of Ukraine.
“We have always been brotherly peoples,” another POW said at the time. “I’ve never wanted to fight against Russia.”
A volunteer battalion named after Bogdan Khmelnitsky, formed from former Ukrainian servicemen, has joined the Russian operational and combat tactical formation “Cascade”, after taking the oath the fighters will go to the front line, the battalion commander Andrei Tishchenko told Sputnik.
“At the moment we have enlisted in the military unit of the Cascade, and right here we will carry out our further service. We will also take the oath in office. We will take the oath at the end of our training,” Tishchenko said.
A former tank commander and senior sergeant in the Ukrainian military, told Sputnik about the creation of the battalion in late February. At that time, about 70 people joined the battalion, 95 percent of whom were former Ukrainian military personnel with combat experience.
According to him, after the oath, the battalion will go to the front.
He also said that the volunteer battalion is formed from captured prisoners in various colonies. According to him, the volunteers will sign contracts with the Russian Armed Forces on general terms.
The members of the battalion themselves told Sputnik that they joined the battalion voluntarily, having received Russian citizenship.