LPR Official Denies Spaniards Visiting Luhansk Fight Alongside Militia

The head of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) press service Vladimir Inogorodsky said that the Spaniards, who came to Donbas as volunteers, did not participate in any military activity.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Spanish volunteers who visited the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) did not participate in any military activities there, the head of the LPR press service told Sputnik on Tuesday.

"Neither of them were fighting or were at the frontline, they were [here] on a humanitarian mission," Vladimir Inogorodsky said, stressing that "they were common people."

Inogorodsky said that among the Spaniards who visited the LPR, there were media and social workers, as well as several actors.

The head of the LPR press service added that the Spaniards "got along well" with the militias.

Inogorodsky refused to provide details on the Spanish citizens who went to the self-proclaimed eastern Ukrainian republic, saying that independence supporters "do not want to harm in any way the Spaniards that were in the LPR." He explained that the volunteers, fearing persecution, asked not to share with anyone their personal data, including names or photographs.

Last week, Spanish National police arrested eight Spanish citizens who took part in the Ukrainian conflict. The authorities said that all of the detainees fought on the same side, but did not specify any further details.

Agustin Rivas, a representative of the Madrid Committee in Support of Anti-Fascist Ukraine, later confirmed to Sputnik that all eight Spanish citizens fought alongside independence supporters.

The detainees themselves, who were released following interrogation, told Sputnik on Monday that Spaniards are among foreign mercenaries fighting in the Donbas region alongside Ukrainian forces.