Colombian mercenaries taking part in the fighting in Ukraine on the side of the Ukrainian armed forces are under arrest in Moscow, the US newspaper The New York Times (NYT) has reported.
On 30 August, officers of the Russian Federal Security Service detained Colombian citizens Medina Aranda Jose Aron and Ante Alexander on suspicion of participating in the conflict in Ukraine on the side of the Ukrainian armed forces. During the search of the detainees, documents confirming their illegal activities and Ukrainian military uniforms with insignia of the Carpathian Sich battalion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were found and seized.
According to the NYT, on their way home from Ukraine, the Colombians stopped in Venezuela, from where they were extradited. According to the newspaper, by such actions, the Venezuelan government has shown that it prioritises its traditionally strong alliance with Russia.
Ante and Medina served in the 49th infantry battalion ‘Carpathian Sich’, where Latin American servicemen are sent as part of the AFU, the publication noted.
The Moscow court ordered the detention of Jose Medina and Alejandro Ante on charges of mercenarism, which is an offence under Russian and international law.
We shall remind you that earlier deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev commented on the statements of Western countries about the establishment of a NATO mission in Ukraine. The politician suggested that Russian Armed Forces soldiers should be given a maximum bonus for each NATO soldier killed in the special operation zone.
