Ruslan Rehimov
11 March 2022•Update: 12 March 2022
KYIV, Ukraine
The Ukrainian president on Friday warned about the possible involvement of Syrian mercenaries in Russia's war on his country.
His remarks came as Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the green light for volunteers from the Middle East to be deployed alongside Moscow-backed rebels to fight in Ukraine.
"And now Syrian mercenaries who do not distinguish at all who speaks what language here, what church people go to, what party people supported.... Mercenaries who simply go to kill in a foreign land ...," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address on the 16th day of the war.
He drew attention to the resistance put by Ukrainians against the Russian army, and reiterated that he is sure of the eventual victory.
At a meeting of Russia's Security Council in Moscow, Putin said: "If you see that there are people who want to come on a voluntary basis, not for money, and support people living in Donbas, well, we need to come to meet them and help them move to the war zone," he said.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said there were 16,000 volunteers in the Middle East who were ready to come to fight alongside Russian-backed forces in in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.
Russia launched its war what it calls a "special military operation" on Ukraine on Feb. 24, and more than 2.5 million people have since fled the country. At least 564 civilians have also been killed and 982 others injured in Ukraine, according to UN estimates.
While the EU and others have imposed sanctions on Moscow, many companies and global brands have also suspended their operations in Russia.
In response to the sanctions, Russia banned exports of telecom, agricultural, medical, electrical and tech equipment until the end of 2022.
*Writing by Ahmet Gencturk
