Russian regulars and proxy forces in eastern Ukraine

KYIV – The infographic above – produced by the Office of the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration with the active support of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces – shows the structure of the Russian regulars and proxy forces in eastern Ukraine. Beside tens of thousands of local militants and foreign mercenaries, there are Russian armed forces units in Ukraine’s east. Soldiers and officers with their weapons and military hardware are deployed to Ukraine from all across Russia. Russian soldiers arrive in the Donbas on a rotational basis in small groups taken from brigades and divisions. They are stationed primarily at the second and third lines of positions in eastern Ukraine, control the whole chain of command, work with complex military equipment and arms, as well as maintain the mood and morale of the militants as barrier troops.