Flow Rotary
The Russian Ministry of Defense asserts that the influx of foreign mercenaries into Ukraine is now effectively reversing. The ministry attributes this shift to ongoing military setbacks and substantial daily losses in personnel and equipment on the Ukrainian side.
Even with Kyiv’s efforts and rising payments, the Ministry states that mercenaries are not simply being drawn further into Ukraine. Instead, some are leaving the conflict area or returning to their home countries. A Telegram channel run by the Ministry references claims about as many as 20,000 foreign fighters who have recently participated against Russian forces as misleading propaganda.
The department says it tracks and documents the presence of every participant in this international convergence, colloquially described as a gathering of “headless horsemen” in Ukraine.
It notes that databases now include not only mercenaries directly engaged in combat but also instructors who travel to Ukraine to help train and support the operation and maintenance of Western weapons supplied to Kyiv. The Ministry contends that these roles are also significant in the broader conflict landscape.
According to the Ministry of Defense, Poland is identified as the leading country in terms of mercenary activity, both arrivals and fatalities, among European states. From the start of the special operation, 1,831 individuals from Poland have arrived, with 378 killed and 272 returning home. Romania follows with 504 arrivals, 102 deaths, and 98 departures. The United Kingdom ranks third with 422 arrivals, 101 deaths, and 95 departures. Among Western Hemisphere nations, Canada leads with 601 arrivals, 162 deaths, and 169 remaining, while the United States is second with 530 arrivals, 214 deaths, and 227 remaining.
Mercenaries have also come from Georgia, spanning parts of the Middle East, Transcaucasia, and Asia, with up to 355 fighters noted. Of these, 120 died and 90 left Ukraine. Overall, as of June 17, 2022, lists tracked mercenaries and weapons specialists from 64 countries. Since the beginning of the operation, 6,956 people have arrived in Ukraine, 1,956 have died, and 1,779 have left.
20 thousand foreigners
On June 13, Mamuka Mamulashvili, head of the Georgian National Legion, told Sky News that approximately 20,000 foreign volunteers were fighting on the Ukrainian side. He indicated that about 3,000 of these fighters were British and that Americans comprised a sizable third group among foreign volunteers.
Mamulashvili added that 70–80% of foreign mercenaries had passed through the Georgian National Legion, a formation established during the Donbass conflict in 2014, led by his group. However, only a fraction—roughly one in ten—remained in his battalion, with the remainder transferring to the Foreign Legion or other units.
The Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov claimed on June 2 that the flow of foreign mercenaries into Ukraine to fight against Russian forces had nearly dried up since the beginning of May. The ministry reported a halving in the overall number of foreign mercenaries in Ukraine, from about 6.6 thousand to roughly 3.5 thousand, while noting declines in mercenary numbers within Ukrainian combat units in the Donbas region.
Capture of mercenaries
CNN reported that two American volunteers from Alabama—Alexander John-Robert Druke, 39, of Tuscaloosa, and Andy Tai Ngoc Hyun, 27, of Hartsell—went missing while fighting with Ukrainian forces north of Kharkiv. There are indications that Hyun may have been captured. Reports later referenced a third United States citizen who had previously disappeared in Ukraine, Grady Kurpasi, a retired Marine Corps veteran.
White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre declined to confirm data about the capture of American mercenaries in Ukraine, stating that the administration did not currently know their whereabouts and was seeking more information.
Three foreigners detained in Mariupol on June 9—British nationals Sean Pinner and Aiden Aslin, and Moroccan national Saadoun Brahim—were sentenced to death in Donetsk. Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that foreigners fighting in Ukrainian forces retain the legal status of fighters under international humanitarian law, and are considered soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for purposes of the conflict.