Posted on 06/18/2022 6:05:22 AM PDT by delta7
The Russian Ministry of Defense released a ton of information today that proves they have been keeping tabs on the foreign mercenaries who went to Ukraine in February to fight the Russians. According to the Russian information one of the Americans, a former Marine, Grady Kurpasi is dead. The other two, Alex Drueke and Tai Ngoc Huyn aka Andy Win, are prisoners. Andy has been imprisoned since March.
(Excerpt) Read more at thegatewaypundit.com ...
Volunteers are not mercenaries. There is an actual and legal distinction which you and others on this forum clearly do not recognize or appreciate.
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Matters not- tell that to the Lughansk and Donetsk militias. Point being, in war, legalities and “ distinctions” are ignored, by ISIS, by Taliban, by Hezbollah, by FARC, by Iranian Republic Guards, understand?
The “ laws” mean little to many, until the hostilities cease and justice can be administered- if at all. Just look at our Bosnian fiasco, trials were going on 15 years later….
Reality has always been at odds with “ laws”. Have our gun laws stopped the criminals?
When Bernie Sanders, Lindsey Graham and Mo Brooks are all on the same side of an issue, there’s no way in hell it is going to be good for the American citizenry.
I’m talking about a CIA operative giving it up under severe duress during captivity, not some guy trying to sell a book. I’m sure I wouldn’t be surprised by the level of black ops operations that have been run out Ukraine these past ten years or so.
Yeah, “Volunteers are not mercenaries “… Maybe you should explain that to Putin.
“Speaking of which...my understanding is there is some evidence that Drueke is a chemical weapons specialist and not an ordinary combat soldier”.
He has no Combat Infantry Badge and with all those medals, he probably would have if he had been in combat.
My attitude about these Americans is simple:
“Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”
they’ve held Andy Win since March and haven’t executed him yet,
so Russia won’t be executing these guys
they WILL exploit them for PR purposes though, with articles like this, always “threatening” execution
but it won’t happen ...
These civilian folks knew they could die, so how it happens is no matter. Confusing any of this with accepted military protocols is not to be taken serious and never has been.
Basically, it's all the various alphabet agencies in all those countries trying to justify their existence. The great game it used to be called.
Play stupid games...
The question is really are these people “mercenaries” in the legal sense. Usually a mercenary is considered a “hired professional soldier who fights for any state or nation without regard to political interests or issues”. (Source; Britannica). Individual Soldiers or military technical experts who serve a friendly or neutral (to the soldiers country of citizenship) foreign government for ideological reasons are generally not considered mercenaries.
It is a gray area but personally I believe that soldiers and military/security experts who contract out to foreign governments as a profession do fit the definition of mercenary whether or not they are actually engaged in combat. Also foreign troops who are “hired” out to a different government via a government or sovereign agreement, clearly are acting as mercenaries even though individually they do not have a say in the matter.
We never heard anything from our media about 214 dead Americans
The Russians must have kept tallies from all those foreign mercenary barracks and training centers they smoked with missiles
“He has no Combat Infantry Badge and with all those medals, he probably would have if he had been in combat.”
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His official photo identifies him as a CBRN Specialists (MOS 74D), you can see the edge of what is probably a combat patch on his right sleeve, green tabs on his shoulders, and most importantly no crossed rifles on his lapels. He was probably assigned to a chemical unit, (not an infantry unit) where he served as a squad leader.
The Army awards the CIB to the Infantry, not the general Army population.
Putin fans are the dregs of humanity. I suppose that Hitler had his fans also.
Interesting. Could you do a more step-by-step description about how it goes (recruitment, etc.) and how you think mercs are being inserted in Ukraine? I know the latter is speculative, but your educated guess would be interesting.
“The Army awards the CIB to the Infantry, not the general Army population”.
That is my point, thank you.
I have one from Vietnam.
how you think mercs are being inserted in Ukraine?
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First,
Mercenaries, definition “: a soldier who is paid by a foreign country to fight in its army : a soldier who will fight for any group or country that hires him”- are not the major concern.
Understand anyone fighting for the Ukies or Vlad that do not have a Ukie passport are mercenaries. A blue passport holder ( US citizen) going over to Ukraine is a mercenary, even if as a medic, or in a “non combat role”. They are being paid by a foreign country for their services in a foreign war, and at one time or another may have to use deadly force against a foreign National.
The troubling fact I believe is there are types over there that are getting paid by a .gov agency , recruited by front companies to give the appearance they are private citizens. A private citizen supposedly can do as they wish, but in my time we were warned to not participate in hostilities in a foreign conflict. Loss of US citizenship was the penalty.
As to how they are being “ inserted”? Non US registered Front companies, Afghanistan had Blackwater, Dyncorp ( now disbanded and names changed). IF .gov has contracted private “ security “ companies or foreign companies ( most likely) to do their work, they are just as guilty as outright paying them directly. Who paid their plane tickets? Who gave them their medical coverage? Who is the insurer? What company is their life insurance policy with?
Are they being paid in cash? I was in one contract.
The issue to me is mute if a private individual pays his way, but inevitably he is not working for free and is receiving payment from the Ukies. Who will prosecute him? Definitely no one in the corrupted Biden admin…not equal justice- remember the clowns rushing over to Syria to fight for Isis? Some were prosecuted, some not.
If these clowns want to go fight Vlad- fine, they are no different than Kadyrov’s volunteer group fighting the Ukie Nazis…But if . Gov is paying, that is wrong.
Is he a member of the Ukrainian military, or is he a mercenary? How can the Russians differentiate?
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Passports, and don’t forget dual citizenship, something I know much about. Doesn’t matter if military, their passport is the deciding factor… and I will not get into the slippery slope of revoking your citizenship- yes I know a few.
Speaking of which...my understanding is there is some evidence that Drueke is a chemical weapons specialist and not an ordinary combat soldier.
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Yes, suspicious, there are no “ coincidences “, question is did the Ukies hire him for his past experience in chem weapons? Or did a foreign contractor company ( paid by .gov) hire him ?Let’s check the boxes- He has a blue passport - check. Who is paying him? No way to know, but if the Ukies are he is a mercenary ( I have no problems with that), if a .gov contracting company is - big problem. Fact is .gov has all the power to wipe EVERYTHING clean, disappear someone. Local property taxes, public records , blacked out. Credit reports blacked out, anything and everything with a name electronically disappeared- ask how I know?
So by your definition you are saying all the foreign nationals who fought in the United States Army in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Grenada, Vietnam, Korea, World War II, World War I, Spanish American War, Civil War, Mexican War, Seminole War, War of 1812, Quasi War with France and the American Revolution were mercenaries. Currently you must be a permanent legal resident of the US to join our military but that is a relatively new condition of enlistment.
Americans enlisted in foreign militaries to fight in WW1 and WW2 for ideological reasons which by any reasonable definition excludes them from being labled mercenaries. Getting paid or not is irrelevant. A lack of ideological commitment to the government or cause you are being paid to serve is a key element of being a mercenary. A mercenary also generally needs to be a professional soldier or military expert as a primary mode of employment.
The definition you used in your example is incredibly broad and not something that has been accepted in this country or most of the world for hundreds of years.
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