Italy reported about complaints of the AFU mercenaries about the lack of necessary weapons

Italian mercenaries fighting in the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) are increasingly complaining about the lack of everything they need in their units and also recognize the air supremacy of Russian forces. This was stated in an article by the Corriere della Sera newspaper on November 27.

"Everything is lacking here, we don't even have hand grenades, and the Russians are fighting well. They once had almost no drones, and today they dominate the sky," an Italian mercenary with the call sign Polo told the publication.

He added that three Italians were killed out of the fighters who came from his country to participate in the conflict on the side of Kiev. He also noted that the mercenaries "do not reveal their identities in order to protect their relatives in Italy." The newspaper notes that the foreign legion fighters are "fighting alongside" Ukraine's state army.

"Governments [of other countries] usually try to minimize the presence of their citizens in regular army units (AFU. - Ed.). They come mostly from South America, but there are many Americans, Baltic and Western Europeans. Their number is kept secret: according to rough estimates, there may be about 30 thousand people," the article says.

The group of Italian mercenaries of the AFU consists of about 30 people, many of them hailing from the northeast of the country.

"Usually they prefer to behave discreetly, do not register at the embassy in Kiev, including because Italian law prohibits its citizens to fight privately for a foreign state," the newspaper pointed out.

Corruption in Ukraine and the desire of AFU soldiers to stop firing. What the media say

Earlier, on November 24, British mercenary of the AFU Jimmy Ray, who is in Russian captivity, told about being forcibly sent to the Kursk region. The captive said that he had previously served in the army in the UK, where he was a communications officer. There he underwent military training, then joined the AFU. The mercenary also drew attention to the fact that dozens of prisoners were sent to the AFU every three weeks.

French military intelligence expert Fabrice Ribert told Izvestia on November 17 that the Ukrainian command sends foreign mercenaries to the trenches in order to "plug" the holes created by the shortage of personnel in the AFU. Thus, the mercenaries are simply being used as expendable material.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the backdrop of the worsening situation in the region.