Putin has agreed that Russia should allow foreign fighters to join the hostilities
Over 16,000 foreign fighters, many of them from the Middle East and experienced in fighting against jihadists, want to go to Ukraine and join the forces of the Russia-backed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Russia’s defense minister claimed on Friday. The Russian military has suggested giving them the green light, the official said, during a national security council meeting.
“We believe it would be right to positively respond to those requests, especially since they are doing it not for money, but because that is their wish. We know many of those people, they helped us fight against [terrorist group] ISIL at the most difficult time in the last ten years,” Sergei Shoigu recalled.
President Vladimir Putin said he supported the idea, pointing out that Russia’s opponents in Ukraine were doing a similar thing.
“The Western sponsors of Ukraine, of the Ukrainian regime, don’t hide it, do it in the open, in violation of international law,” Putin said, after labeling foreign fighters traveling to fight for Ukraine “mercenaries.”
Kiev has allowed foreign volunteers to come to Ukraine and fight against Russian troops there. Some Western nations warned their active-duty military service members against responding to the call. Nonetheless, Kiev claims some 20,000 foreign citizens from 52 nations have agreed to help its cause.
During the meeting in Moscow, Shoigu also suggested arming with more advanced weapons the forces of Ukraine’s breakaway regions, which Moscow has recognized as sovereign states. He said Russian troops had captured plenty of military hardware from Ukraine, including West-supplied anti-aircraft and anti-tank portable missiles, which, he said, the rebels could put to good use.
The Russian president also approved this proposal, saying he would sign the relevant orders if needed.
The minister also raised the issue of NATO buildup in Eastern Europe, which has been done amid the hostilities in Ukraine. The Russian military has plans on how to counter it, Shoigu reported. Putin said this issue required further deliberation.
Russia attacked Ukraine in late February, claiming that NATO’s creeping expansion into the country, as well as Kiev’s refusal to make progress in resolving its protracted conflict with the rebels, had left Moscow with no better options.
Ukraine and Western powers branded the offensive an unprovoked act of aggression. Russia was hit with unprecedented economic sanctions in retaliation, while Ukraine was offered more weapons and financial aid. NATO refused to deploy its own troops in defense of Ukraine, saying it didn’t want the hostilities with Russia to escalate further.
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