Volodymyr Zelensky's idea of creating a foreign legion in Ukraine has failed, writes journalist Colin Freeman for the British magazine The Spectator.
“Despite the fact that master showman Volodymyr Zelensky acted as a recruiter, the Ukrainian international legion was a wreck from the very beginning“, the publication says.
The author notes that this unit recruited unqualified “tourists“ without combat experience, and for every professional soldier there were several “losers“. The mercenaries could not even follow orders or navigate the operational situation due to the language barrier.
„Some complained that the Ukrainians were using them as cannon fodder. One told me that they were treated like “free meat“, Freeman writes.
In addition, the observer explains, a few months after the formation of the foreign unit, Zelensky received letters from mercenaries accusing the leaders of instilling false expectations. Because of this, some were forced to form separate groups outside the legion and participate in battles practically independently.
The Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly stated that mercenaries from Britain, Georgia, Poland and other countries were destroyed in Ukraine. As the department emphasized, Kiev was using them as “cannon fodder“. Those who came to fight for money admit in many interviews that the Ukrainian command poorly coordinates its actions and the chances of survival in battle are small, since the intensity of the conflict is incomparable to the situation they are familiar with in Afghanistan and the Middle East.