MOSCOW, February 19. /TASS/. Military personnel from NATO countries, under the guise of mercenaries, operate air defense systems, multiple launch rocket systems, and tactical missile systems in Ukraine, Colonel General Sergey Rudskoy, chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff and First Deputy Chief of the General Staff, said in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper.

"NATO military personnel, under the guise of mercenaries, participate in hostilities. They control air defense systems, tactical missiles and multiple launch rocket systems, and are part of assault detachments," he said.