5:59 v originále: The Russians fighting for Ukraine

The EU and NATO member states call for further support for Ukraine in the wake of the expected Russian offensive in the east of the country. The fighting rages mostly around Bakhmut, a city in the east of Ukraine, where the Russian military is slowly taking ground. But there are also Russian soldiers fighting alongside Ukrainian troops on the front lines near Bakhmut. The Free Russia Legion unites those who oppose Vladimir Putin's invasion and are ready to fight against their own country.

According to New York Times reporter Michael Schwirtz, some of the soldiers who have chosen to fight against Russia were living in Ukraine when the invasion began, while others had fled from Russia.

Now they are fighting in one of the most dangerous places of the war - near Bakhmut in the Donbas area of Eastern Ukraine.

You can listen to a special episode of the podcast 5:59 in the audio player:

„Many of them said they felt the invasion was such an egregious injustice against Ukraine, against the international order, that they felt only this form of extreme resistance was the appropriate response,“ says New York Times reporter and Pulitzer Prize winner Schwirtz, who reported on the unit from eastern Ukraine.

The Free Russia Legion consisting both of Russian men and women led by Ukrainian officers has been fighting against their own countrymen since about August. This type of legion was not permitted under Ukrainian law prior to its formation.

„The [Ukrainian] military told me that there was such a huge demand from Russian citizens who wanted to join the fight on the side of Ukraine that they felt compelled to create a unit manned fully by Russians that would work as part of what is known as the International Legion, which is a broad umbrella group comprising a number of different foreign legions,“ says Schwirtz, who spent some time with the unit.

Due to security concerns, it is difficult to join the unit, he adds. For example, the soldiers must take polygraph tests before they can enter even the basic training. „The military told me that there have been several attempts by the Russian intelligence services to infiltrate the group.“

What is the motivation of the Free Russia Legion members? And what are the stories behind this unit operating with the Ukrainian military? Listen to the whole interview via the audio player at the top of the article.