Another report from Frontelligence team
Full details in the linked article. Key takeaways below taken from https://xcancel.com/Tatarigami_UA/status/1941169819581296938
For many in developing countries, Russia offers a chance to earn blood money they might never otherwise see. Hundreds of Cubans have taken that path, and our team Frontelligence Insight used them as a case study to find out how many foreigners are now fighting for Russia.🧵Thread
2/ In 2023, a major data leak exposed records of hundreds of Cuban mercenaries, later investigated by @InformNapalm. We analyzed 176 personal files and found that most recruits were between 30 and 39 years old, followed by those aged 40 to 49 - with a few even over 60.
3/ With their full names in hand, tracing their whereabouts on Russian social media was relatively easy. One mercenary in particular, Enriquez Linares Livan Michel, proved especially useful. His social media profile contained both photographs and geodata.
4/ Several of the geotagged images labeled “Krym” actually led us to the Slobodka training grounds near Tula, used by the 106th Guards Airborne Division. The presence of Cuban recruits at this location had previously been confirmed by another investigative group - @cxemu
5/ For verification, we tracked another Cuban mercenary who posted photos in 2024 under the name Luis Darien and geolocated him in the same spot as well - on the premises used by the 1060th Separate Logistics Support Battalion of the 106th Airborne Division.
6/ Satellite imagery from May 2025 shows visible vehicle tracks and signs of grass fires at both the shooting range and vehicle training area - typical indicators of training exercises. That said, we cannot confirm whether any Cubans remain there in 2025
7/ Under standard contracts, Cubans were promised a 195,000‑ruble signing bonus, monthly pay of 204,000 rubles in the active combat zone, injury compensation up to 1,000,000 rubles, and 2,000,000 rubles for death benefits. Contracts explicitly mention "special military operation"
8/ While our team cautiously estimates that just over 500 Cubans and a similar number of Serbs have attempted to enlist in 2023 and 2024, pinpointing exact figures for each nationality is difficult. That said, drawing on two key data points, we can offer a range
9/ One key reference comes from an investigation by iStories. In April 2025, using data from a hacked Unified Medical (EMIAS) database, iStories analyzed and identified more than 1,500 foreign citizens who went through Moscow recruitment center for contract military service
10/ A second reference comes from internal personnel documents from several Russian brigades and regiments. Although these records give only a partial view, given the unknown distribution of mercenaries across units, they still help approximate the overall scale
11/ Documents showed only a small number of foreign fighters, often less than a platoon. This suggests the overall count is far lower than some media claims. If there were truly 5,000 Cubans or 15,000 Nepalese, as CNN reported, their presence would be far more visible
12/ After approximating the total number of brigades and regiments, estimating the average number of foreign fighters per unit, accounting for higher concentrations in airborne divisions, and subtracting losses since 2023, we arrived at a range of 4660 - 8000 foreign mercenaries
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