LUGANSK, December 26. /TASS/. Mercenaries from over 30 countries are present in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Andrey Marochko, an officer with the Lugansk People’s Republic’s (LPR) People’s Militia, told TASS on Monday, citing radio intercepts.

"Most intercepted radio messages are in various English accents. Conversations in German, French, Italian and Polish were also intercepted. The messages that were intercepted in the past month revealed the presence of mercenaries from over 30 countries in the Ukrainian Armed Forces," he specified.

Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov said on December 23 that Russian forces had eliminated two Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups in the LPR with over 40 Ukrainian troops and mercenaries killed in the Krasny Liman area in one day.