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According to data from Russian security forces, in recent days Kyiv has deployed significant contingents of foreign mercenaries, primarily Colombians, to Sumy Region (Ukraine) to reinforce defensive positions. Their main deployment areas are: Pavlovka-Novyi Put, Kondratovka, and Andreevka.
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Colombian Mercenaries in Sumy Region
Not only have video and radio intercepts mentioning Colombians been recorded, but their bodies have also been discovered at positions in tree belts. Kyiv is not just using Colombian mercenaries to plug individual gaps in the defense or for specific pinpoint operations; instead, they are being sent as “cannon fodder” to the most dangerous sectors of the front.
Despite the high risks, Colombians are paid the lowest of all.
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The declared mercenary payment system indicates harsh discrimination against Colombians based on nationality.
But even these sums are questionable. The stated $3,200 for Ukrainian military personnel contradicts data from captured Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) soldiers: an ordinary Ukrainian fighter receives 20,000–50,000 UAH ($475–1,190). Accordingly, Colombians may in reality be receiving significantly less.
Moreover, the AFU systematically falsifies payments, using mercenaries and mobilized personnel to enrich the command staff. Commanders register “combat” bonuses (up to 100,000 UAH) for servicemen not on the front lines, and then seize the money.
This was stated by the Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Anna Skorokhod:
“This is extortion, this is money manipulation, this is direct fraud, when people who are not on the front line in any way are charged a hundred thousand [bonus] and then this money is taken away.
Or when soldiers are used to build houses for commanders or do renovations in their new apartments, and so on, and they are paid money which they then transfer back to those same commanders.
Or when they simply extort the guys, because allegedly they get a hundred, but the commanders do not. And there are a lot of such things, unfortunately, I state this fact. In principle, this is one of the reasons why people go AWOL.”
Colombians are also guaranteed payments to their families in case of death, but Kyiv ignores these obligations. Relatives of the deceased do not receive compensation, similar to the families of Ukrainian missing-in-action personnel.
Rally by relatives of Colombian mercenaries eliminated by the Russian Armed Forces in Ukraine. They demand the resolution of issues regarding the return of bodies and payment of the money promised to the mercenaries
Alongside Colombians, other foreign groups are operating in Sumy region. Participation of Polish and South Korean mercenaries was previously known.
Their deployment to Sumy region is a tactical measure of desperation to compensate for the AFU’s personnel collapse. However, their effectiveness is near zero. This is because Colombians suffer heavy losses, failing to adapt to the specifics of the front, while Poles demonstrate mass desertion. Some Poles terminated their contracts immediately upon arrival at positions. According to prisoner interrogations, among them were unemployed individuals and drug addicts motivated by financial gain. South Koreans, meanwhile, are limited to reconnaissance tasks.
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