A Russian soldier who defected through a joint operation of the Freedom of Russia Legion and Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) project "I Want to Live" conducted espionage and injured his commander in a grenade attack, HUR revealed at a press conference on Aug. 20 attended by a Kyiv Independent reporter.
The 24-year-old soldier, codenamed "Silver," contacted the legion in early 2024 after witnessing a variety of criminal acts committed by his unit and commanders.
"Silver" then reportedly provided clandestine information to the legion about the location of Russian troops and plans for military operations.
Due to "disagreement with the command and authority" of Russia, "Silver" then said he threw a grenade down a ventilation shaft into where his commander was sleeping. The incident took place near the town of Ocheretyne in Donetsk Oblast.
At the press conference, "Silver" said that the commander was injured as a result of the grenade attack but was unsure of the extent of his injuries. The commander's deputy may have also been injured, he added. He then escaped and met with military intelligence officials and representatives of the legion.
Originally, "Silver" studied to be a combat paramedic and served as a conscript in a drone company before Russia's full-scale invasion.
In September 2023, "Silver" found out about the legion and decided to fight alongside Ukraine. He figured "that the best option would be to sign a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry in order to cross the border." Shortly after, he found that he had been assigned to a so-called "Storm-Z" unit, which are often used in human-wave type assaults that result in heavy casualties.
"Silver" is now undergoing a training course for new recruits to the legion and will soon go fight against Russia.
The legion is one of the several anti-Kremlin Russian militias who fight on Ukraine's side and have carried out several cross-border raids into Russian territory.
Ukraine's military intelligence launched the "I Want to Live" project in 2022 to help Russian soldiers desert or defect to the Ukrainian side.
One of the most high-profile defections took place in August 2023, when a Russian pilot named Maksim Kuzminov surrendered along with his Mi-8 helicopter. Kuzminov was found dead in Spain in February 2024, with the circumstances of his death resembling previous Moscow-contracted killings.
Martin Fornusek
(Updated: )
