A former British soldier captured by Kremlin troops in southern Russia wanted to leave his Ukrainian army unit for security reasons, the Mail has been told.
James Anderson, 22, was fighting in the strategically important Kursk province in southern Russia last week when his trench was stormed by enemy troops.
After a grenade battle, he was one of 10 Ukrainian Defense Forces soldiers arrested as prisoners of war.
A disturbing video recorded by the Russians, in clear violation of the Geneva Convention, showed the former Royal Signal Corps soldier tied up and interrogated.
Now another former UK soldier, who left the same unit just weeks ago, claims Ukrainian officers left James and his colleagues exposed.
The former infantryman, called ‘Mike’, said that James had wanted to transfer because of these problems, but felt honor bound to continue the mission in Kursk.
Thousands of Ukrainian troops, assisted by international volunteers, hold out in an enclave surrounded by Russian and North Korean soldiers.
James Anderson, 22, was fighting in the strategically important Kursk province in southern Russia last week when his trench was stormed by enemy troops.
A photograph of Mr. Anderson parading in front of cameras published by Kremlin-backed online sources.
After a grenade battle, he was one of 10 Ukrainian Defense Forces soldiers arrested as prisoners of war.
James was part of the Ukrainian expeditionary force that invaded Russia in August, stunning the Kremlin and seizing nearly 1,400 square kilometers of territory.
James was part of the Ukrainian expeditionary force that invaded Russia in August, stunning the Kremlin and seizing nearly 1,400 square kilometers of territory.
But despite their efforts, Ukraine has lost up to 40 percent of that battlefield, because its soldiers are outnumbered, outgunned, and, according to Mike, poorly equipped.
It is considered essential that Ukraine retain territory within Russia as a bargaining chip in peace talks scheduled for next year.
Mike said: ‘There was a lack of drone reconnaissance so our situational awareness would be compromised. It frustrated James and me, we felt that the commanders were not doing enough to protect us.
‘The Russians are advancing in large numbers and their artillery is raining down on us. But we can’t see them coming because we don’t have “our eyes on.”
‘Kursk was a strategic risk for Ukraine. We were disappointed that we were not adequately equipped to hold that ground.
‘James wanted to change units. But, being him, he felt committed to the unit we were in.”
The British veteran’s warnings about the safety of friendly forces came as Ukraine fired more US ballistic missiles at Kursk.
kyiv’s use of ATACM today/yesterday is a challenging move, as it follows Russia’s devastating response to its previous salvo.
After Ukraine fired missiles provided by the United States and the United Kingdom for the first time at southern Russia, the Kremlin significantly upped the ante.
Anderson Sr. said his son would not be dissuaded from going to Ukraine because “he thought what he was doing was right.”
James with his sister. He had been in the military for four years and had attended Army Foundation College when he was 17 years old.
In footage released by his captors, Mr Anderson can be heard describing his decision to go fight for Ukraine on Russian soil as a “stupid idea”.
Anderson had been in the military for four years and had attended Army Foundation College when he was 17 years old.
Vladimir Putin’s forces fired a hypersonic nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile into Ukraine, destroying a weapons factory in the central city of Dnipro on Thursday.
Today’s attack by Ukraine was the first use of high-quality foreign rockets since Putin’s dramatic escalation of the conflict.
ATACMs targeted an airfield near Kursk and reportedly destroyed a Russian S-400 air defense system, a radar station and two missile launchers.
Wave after wave of Russian counterattacks have forced Ukrainian units to withdraw from areas of Kursk and raised fears that Russia could retake the entire enclave in the coming months.
More than 50,000 Kremlin troops have been formed while 10,000 North Koreans are reportedly being trained to enter what could be a decisive battle.
Mike said James was a popular and respected figure within the unit and known for his love of animals, particularly stray dogs and ducks.
He also pledged to improve the well-being of the Ukrainian people. According to Mike, he was not a “mercenary.”
“We’ve been waiting a long time for our salaries and it’s less than the minimum wage in the UK,” he said.
James Anderson with his father Scott Anderson. The 41-year-old said he and other family members had begged his son not to go to Ukraine before joining about eight months ago.
Anderson Sr., who said he served a short prison sentence for an internal matter when his son joined the Ukrainians, said Foreign Ministry officials had contacted him.
Anderson Sr. with James’ grandmother, Jacqueline Payne
“We earned £400 per cm when we were behind the front line, £1,000 per cm when we were advanced and we made an extra £60 per day when we were in direct combat.
‘If he wasn’t so committed to the cause, James wouldn’t have been captured.
“He had also proven himself, despite coming from an armed background and not an infantry regiment.
‘As he used to be in the Royal Signal Corps, we were asking him to fix the internet. Otherwise, your communication experience was not put to good use.
‘Most combat is bombing and most combat is luck, 80 percent luck, 20 percent skill. Nobody knows where it will land.
‘We were not trained to resist interrogations or to face capture. However, he seemed very composed in the video. I don’t think they’ll kill him. It is a propaganda tool.
Mike said James had been deployed to Ukraine in April, initially joining the country’s international battalion before being transferred to its Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Frustrating for their British recruits, the Defense Forces received only basic military training.
Mike and James’ colleagues were not part of the UK’s Operation Interflex program which has trained 50,000 Ukrainians in this country.
Mike added that Ukraine needs to be “realistic” about what it can achieve both on the battlefield and in post-conflict negotiations.
Russian President Vladimir Putin records televised speech in Moscow
Tragically, in Mike’s opinion, the country is not going to take back the territory illegally confiscated by Russia.
He also questioned the UK’s authorization for Ukraine to fire British Storm Shadow ballistic missiles at internationally recognized Russian sovereign territory.
He said: “I think that was annoying the bear, taking territory in Kursk and letting them fire Storm Shadows at Russia. That’s why I’m not surprised how Russia has responded.
‘Fighting is not going to win the war for either side. There will have to be talks and Ukraine will have to give up areas such as Donbas and Crimea.
James’ grandmother Jacqueline Payne, 60, told the Mail yesterday that she “definitely didn’t go after the money”.
“He was only paid £400 or £800 at a time and he had a well-paid job here in the UK,” he said.
Mrs Payne, from Banbury, Oxfordshire, continued: ‘His reason for going there has always been that he wants to help the Ukrainian people because he has been trained as a soldier in the British Army. That has never changed, but he said he hoped to go back and train his soldiers instead of continuing to fight on the front lines.