According to the New York Times, it's probably true first case detaining a soldier who is a citizen western countrythat happened on the territory Russia from the beginning of her aggression on Ukraine.
Kremlin media report that the detained man is James Scott Rhys Anderson – a “British mercenary” who belonged to a battalion of about 500 Ukrainians soldiers fighting in the Kursk region.
In this region since August Ukraine leads fights. Currently Ukrainian forces they face a counterattack by Russian troopsprobably supported by soldiers from North Korea.
The Russians captured the Briton. He fought on the Ukrainian side
In circulating online video A man wearing a uniform is seen identifying himself as Anderson and saying that he served as a private in the British Army from 2019 to 2023.
He explains that he joined the legion after he lost his job and saw reports of the war in Ukraine on TV. The man says that flew from Luton in Great Britain do Krakowand then went by bus to the border with Ukraine.
As reported by the BBC, the British Foreign Office only stated that “supports the Briton's family in connection with reports of his arrest.
War in Ukraine. Briton in the hands of the Russian army
In an interview with the Daily Mail newspaper, Scott Anderson confirmed that his son was in the recordingwhich belongs to the Ukrainian legion. His father expressed fears that James would be tortured by Russian authorities.
He added that he had daily contact with my sonmost recently last week, when he was supposed to be in Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, near the border with Russia.
According to “NYT”, Russian investigators will probably accuse Anderson of being a mercenary and illegal participation in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.