Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Netanyahu: If Lebanese Army takes steps to disarm Hezbollah, Israel will engage in reciprocal measures, including phased reduction of Israeli military presence in Lebanon
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Photojournalist Houssam Al-Masri martyred, reporters Hatem Omar, Mohammad Ashraf Salameh injured in Israeli strike on Nasser Medical Complex.
Israeli media: Intense US efforts are being made to resolve differences, such as the issue of the Israeli presence on Mount Hermon and in southern Syria
Israeli media: The security agreement means amending the disengagement agreement, which will also address the Druze issue
Israeli media: Attempts to reach a security agreement between 'Israel' and Syria were among the topics discussed at the Paris meeting
Israeli media: Sheikh Muwaffaq Tarif rejected a US proposal to join the recent tripartite meeting between Tom Barrack, al-Shaibani, and Dermer
Saba News Agency: Two martyred, five injured in a preliminary toll of the Israeli aggression on the Yemeni Oil Company station on Al-Sitteen Street in Sanaa
Senior Yemeni military source to Al Mayadeen: We observed a state of confusion among the enemy's aircraft squadron after Yemeni air defenses intercepted the attack
Senior Yemeni military source to Al Mayadeen: The Yemeni air defense forces succeeded in neutralizing a squadron of enemy aircraft and prevented airstrikes on some governorates
Senior Yemeni military source to Al Mayadeen: Our air defenses and missile forces forced a formation of enemy aircraft to flee the airspace

French mercenaries active in Ukraine war: Ex-Intel Officer

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 25 Apr 2024 08:49
  • 3 Shares
4 Min Read

A former French counter-terrorism intelligence officer Nicolas Cinquini is actively pursuing information regarding French citizens participating in the war on Ukraine's side.

  • x
  • Illustrative: A Ukrainian soldier picks up a machine gun after a heavy fight on the front line in the village of Robotyne, Ukraine, Friday March 1, 2024. (AP)
    A Ukrainian soldier picks up a machine gun after a heavy fight on the front line in the village of Robotyne, Ukraine, Friday, March 1, 2024. (AP)

Nicolas Cinquini, a former French counter-terrorism intelligence officer currently looking into information regarding French citizens participating on Ukraine's side in the conflict, informed Sputnik on Thursday that approximately 75 French mercenaries in Ukraine have either been killed, injured, or have returned to France since the beginning of the conflict.

“Including those killed, wounded, and those who have returned, the list I have published as of today includes 75 individuals who have been identified accurately or under pseudonyms, which can already tell us a lot,” Cinquini said.

He mentioned that the list also comprises two individuals whom French authorities refer to as "volunteers".
 
"The government presented them as 'humanitarian workers', employees of a Swiss NGO, but I am convinced that they were government agents. Their existence was revealed to us with their death on February 1," the former intelligence officer said.

He also indicated possessing information about additional mercenaries who engaged in hostilities on behalf of Kiev.

“The rest have just been discovered and there is not yet enough information about them to publish,” Cinquini stressed.

Simultaneously, the French Foreign Ministry has refuted the existence of French mercenaries within the Ukrainian Armed Forces, attributing such claims to Russian "disinformation", despite reports in the French media about French citizens killed in Ukraine.

Several statements released ever since the beginning of the Ukraine-Russian conflict show that Kiev's Western allies have mercenaries fighting in Ukraine.

Dive deeper 

Related News

Declassified papers reveal Clinton floated Russian NATO membership

Russia will not accept NATO troops in Ukraine as security guarantee

In mid-March, the Russian Defense Ministry announced more than 13,387 foreign mercenaries arrived in Ukraine to participate in hostilities against Russia.

Within that timeframe, 5,962 militants were eliminated, according to the ministry. Poland was identified as the leading contributor in terms of the number of slain mercenaries, with 2,960 individuals arriving from there, out of which 1,497 were killed.

Following Poland, Georgia saw 561 casualties out of 1,042 mercenaries, while arrivals from the United States suffered 491 losses out of 1,113 individuals.

Additionally, 422 out of 1,005 Canadian mercenaries, 360 out of 822 British mercenaries, and 349 out of 784 Romanian mercenaries were also killed. Germany contributed 235 mercenaries, with 88 of them perishing. 

Not only American troops but also the CIA 

According to US Defense Department documents leaked in March 2023, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby refused to verify the number but validated “a small US military presence” there.

A recent The New York Times report based on interviews with more than 200 current and former officials showed that there were “scores”, at least more than 40, of CIA officers in Ukraine.

In a transcript of a February 19 conversation between senior German Air Force officials, one official stated, “It's known that there are numerous people there in civilian attire who speak with an American accent.”

It further exposed that there are UK personnel on the ground. One official, amid discussions on how German Taurus long-range missiles could function in Ukraine, revealed that the Germans “know how the English do it. . .. They have several people on-site."

The British prime minister’s office has verified that the UK has soldiers on the ground saying "Beyond the small number of personnel we do have in the country supporting the armed forces of Ukraine, we haven't got any plans for large-scale deployment."

Russia, since 2022, has repeatedly warned the US and its Western allies, including France, against partaking in the war, emphasizing that it will defend itself in any way possible. It also stressed that the West and NATO have been playing a direct role by continuously aiding Ukraine with advanced weapons and military equipment. 

Read next: Putin: A Champion of the Global South?

  • Nato
  • Russia
  • French mercenaries
  • France
  • Nato Alliance
  • Ukraine
  • Ukraine war
  • mercenaries
Russia & NATO

Russia & NATO

As the Draconian Western-led sanctions on Russia exacerbate the economic crisis worldwide, and as Russian troops gain more ground despite the influx of military aid into Ukraine, exposing US direct involvement in bio-labs spread across Eastern Europe and the insurgence of neo-Nazi groups… How will things unfold?

Most Read

Tom Artiom Alexandrovich, executive director of the defense division of the Israeli National Cyber Directorate, undated (Social media)

Israeli-born US prosecutor drops Israeli officer child sex crime

  • Politics
  • 19 Aug 2025
Displaced Palestinians walk through a makeshift camp along the beach in Gaza City, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025 (AP)

Hamas, other factions accept Egypt-Qatar ceasefire proposal: Exclusive

  • Politics
  • 18 Aug 2025
Palestine will not be liberated by UN reports, but by pursuing a different strategic horizon: one that does not beg for recognition. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Economy of Genocide: Albanese's report accuses, but doesn't dismantle system

  • Opinion
  • 18 Aug 2025
Israeli soldiers stand on the top of armoured vehicles parked on an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian fighters target Israeli soldiers, vehicles in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 21 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Prime minister's office in al-Quds, Occupied Palestine, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu deliberately derailing truce with Gaza occupation: Hamas

Irish President Michael Higgins arrives to deliver his speech during a 42nd World Food Day celebration at FAO headquarters in Rome, on Oct. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Politics

Irish president renews call for UN military intervention in Gaza

US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the US Embassy in Aukar, northern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, July 21, 2025 (AP)
Politics

US envoy, Netanyahu discuss restraining attacks on Lebanon, withdrawal

Smoke billows following Israeli airstrikes in multiple areas in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Ansar Allah vow sustained Gaza support despite Israeli strikes

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS