‘Two British mercenaries are killed by Putin’s forces while fighting alongside Ukrainian soldiers’

The Russian Defense Ministry has claimed that its forces have killed two British ‘mercenaries’ in Ukraine.

The Kremlin said the fighters were killed during an attack on the Ukrainian village of Mykhailivka, in the Donetsk region, which was taken over by Russian forces on October 13.

The Defense Ministry quoted the deputy commander of the Russian battalion that led the attack, Igor Krasilnikov, as saying: “There were two soldiers from Britain, mercenaries. They actually remained in that stronghold.

‘They were definitely soldiers from Great Britain. There were stripes, flags on the uniform, NATO-style uniforms, and the weapons were also foreign-made.”

The Kremlin’s claims could not be verified by MailOnline, nor could the identity of the ‘mercenaries’ be established.

The Kremlin said at the time of the attack on the village that it had hit a Ukrainian airfield and drone depots, as well as “build-ups of enemy manpower and military equipment.”

British volunteers and former troops have been killed in fighting in Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022.

Soldiers of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine fire a French MO-120-RT heavy mortar at Russian forces on the front line near the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s Donetsk region on Wednesday, May 22, 2024.

A firefighter works at a scene of a Russian missile attack, amid the Russian attack on Ukraine, in Odesa, Ukraine, in this handout photo released on October 21, 2024

In July, Peter Fouche, 49, a former London taxi driver, was buried after being murdered on June 27 when his unit clashed with Russian forces.

During the funeral ceremony, Ukrainian soldiers carried Fouche’s coffin across Kiev’s landmark Independence Square, the site of mass protests in 2014 that ousted a pro-Russian president.

Mr. Fouche’s comrades held back tears as they lined up to say goodbye. Others read prayers while holding up Ukrainian flags and military insignia.

His partner, wearing a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt, knelt down to embrace the coffin.

Russia’s latest claims come after it emerged that the British Ministry of Defense is considering sending troops to Ukraine to train its forces in the fight against Russia.

Peter Fouche, 49, (pictured) helped set up a charity called Project Konstantin, which has been providing essential supplies to Ukrainian fighters on the frontline since 2022

A mourner pays his respects next to Peter Fouche’s coffin on July 6 as other soldiers keep vigil

Comrades and friends of the late British combat medic Peter Fouche attend a farewell ceremony for him at Independence Square

The independent revealed earlier this month that top military bosses were drawing up plans to travel to western Ukraine to provide intensive training to new recruits.

Britain has led a multinational drive to train Ukrainian troops under Operation Interflex, which has seen more than 45,000 troops trained since September.

The move was extended by the British government that month, meaning Britain will train Ukrainian troops until at least the end of 2025.

British Defense Secretary John Healey said at the time: ‘Operation Interflex has given the brave men and women of Ukraine the vital skills they need to defend their country in the face of Putin’s illegal invasion.

“The expansion of this training, which is vital to Ukraine’s defence, is another example of Britain’s strong commitment to Ukraine.

“The UK will continue to step up our support. We will support Ukraine for as long as necessary.”

Despite international support for Ukraine, the country has suffered many losses since the invasion began in February 2022.

The shield of the 93rd Brigade ‘Kholodny Yar’ of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on a soldiers’ field on the Donetsk Front in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on October 21, 2024

Debris lies in a car repair shop building damaged by Russian shelling on October 21, 2024 in Kharkiv, Ukraine

According to pro-Russian bloggers, Russian forces are currently engaged in street-to-street fighting with Ukrainian forces on the outskirts of the eastern Ukrainian city of Selydove, as Moscow’s forces try to gain control of the entire Donbas region.

Russian forces, which President Vladimir Putin ordered to invade Ukraine in February 2022, advanced in September at the fastest pace since March 2022, according to open source data, despite Ukraine capturing part of Russia’s Kursk region .

The focus of Russia’s advance in recent months has been in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, over which Putin says he wants to gain full control.

In recent weeks, Russia has surrounded cities in the Donetsk region and then slowly reduced them until Ukrainian units are forced to withdraw. According to bloggers, they are doing the same with Selydove, which had more than 20,000 inhabitants before the war.

“Street by street there is fighting in the city,” said Yuri Podolyaka, a prominent Ukrainian-born pro-Russian military blogger. “The attack on Selydove has intensified.”

Other pro-Russian bloggers published a video of the intensive shelling of Selydove. Reuters could not immediately verify the images. The Russian Defense Ministry made no comment and there was no immediate comment from Kiev.

Soldiers of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, named after King Danylo, fire a 120mm mortar at Russian troops in a front line, amid the Russian attack on Ukraine, near the town of Khasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine , June 15, 202

Ukrainian soldiers from the 28th Separate Mechanized Brigade fire a 120mm mortar at Russian troops in a front line, amid the Russian attack on Ukraine, near the city of Bakhmut, Ukraine, March 15, 2024

The Ukrainian Army General Staff said in a late afternoon report on Sunday that Ukrainian forces had repelled 15 Russian attacks around several towns and villages, including Selydove. According to the report, nine battles were still raging in the area.

The popular Ukrainian war blog DeepState showed that Selydove is in Ukrainian hands.

Russia controls about 80% of the Donbas, covering an area about half the size of the US state of Ohio, and is advancing westward along about 100 km of the 1,200 km front around the tactically important cities of Pokrovsk and Kurakhove.

The two-and-a-half-year war in Ukraine is entering its most dangerous phase, according to Russian officials, as Russian forces advance and the West wonders how the war will end.

Ukraine wants NATO membership, a step that Russia says would be unacceptable. The United States and key NATO powers have not publicly endorsed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s call for an immediate invitation to NATO membership.

Russian forces, who have captured about a fifth of Ukraine, control 98.5% of the Luhansk region and 60% of the Donetsk region. Together the two regions form the Donbas, the cradle of the war.

After a pro-Russian president was overthrown in Ukraine’s 2014 Maidan Revolution, Russia annexed Crimea and pro-Russian protests broke out in parts of the Donbas, where Moscow began supporting separatist forces.

MailOnline has contacted the British FCDO for comment.