Soldiers of Misfortune: Alleged US Mercenaries Spotted in Donbass

Alleged US mercenaries were seen in a night club in the city of Mariupol under Kiev's control, a Donetsk People's Republic military official said.

DONETSK (Sputnik) — The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's (DPR) intelligence has detected the presence of alleged US mercenaries in southern Donbass, DPR deputy defense minister said Thursday.

"17 military personnel of a private military company were seen in the "Port City" nigh club in [the eastern Ukrainian city] Mariupol. Presumably, they are citizens of the United States. They spoke English and had US insignias..," Eduard Basurin said.

On December 23, 2015, DPR's Defense Ministry said some 100 Turkish mercenaries had arrived in Mariupol, while about 200 people, speaking Polish, Slovak and Turkish had arrived in another eastern Ukrainian city of Artemovsk.

The Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation in the country's eastern regions since April 2014.

In February, Kiev and the representatives of Donbass independence supporters signed a deal on Ukrainian reconciliation in Minsk, including a ceasefire and the withdrawal of weapons from the line of contact. Article 10 of the agreement calls for the pullout of all foreign armed formations, military equipment and mercenaries from Ukraine.