Russian state TV airs video of 2 Americans captured while fighting for Ukraine's forces

As the ravaging Russia-Ukraine war reached its 115th day, Russian state television broadcasted videos of two United States military veterans on Friday, who went missing last week while fighting alongside Ukrainian troops. According to a report by The Associated Press, Russian state TV confirmed that the two American soldiers were taken hostage, further increasing concerns about their safety. Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh, both from Alabama, US, are thought to be the first Americans taken prisoner by the Russian army since the war with Ukraine began on February 24. 

Drueke, who served in the United States Army, and Huynh, a member of the United States Marine Corps, went missing on June 9 after their unit came under intense assault in the northeastern part of Kharkiv region. According to an RT television report, citing Drueke, the Americans were detached from the others and headed out into the woods once it was safe. They eventually arrived in a town where they were confronted by a Russian patrol and surrendered. 

The American soldiers were being taken by Russian-supported separatist fighters in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, according to RT. 

Apart from this, three more foreigners battling for Ukraine, two Britons and a Moroccan, were condemned to death by a rebel court in Donetsk, in the Donbas, The Associated Press reported.  

Russia says foreigners fighting with Ukraine will be treated as mercenaries

Furthermore, the United States has urged that everyone apprehended be treated as a prisoner of war, with assurances of humane treatment and fair trials. The Russian military, however, said that foreigners fighting with Ukraine are mercenaries and are not safeguarded as combatants under the Geneva Conventions. 

Earlier this week, the US State Department said that it has been looking into accusations that two American citizens had been kidnapped by Russian or Russian-backed troops. It also reaffirmed its advice that Americans should not go to war-torn Ukraine to fight, a stance that US President Joe Biden reinforced on Friday. 

When questioned about the missing Americans prior to the release of the Russian videos, Biden indicated that he had been informed of the matter but gave no additional details. Biden said, “I don’t know where they are and I want to be clear: Americans should not be going to Ukraine”. He added, “I’ll say it again, Americans should not be going to Ukraine.” 

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, too, had previously cautioned American citizens from joining Ukraine in the battle, claiming that if caught by the Russian military, American fighters would be classified as mercenaries, and so would not be protected by international laws for prisoners of war. As per media reports, when Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, the Ukrainian Embassy in the US received notifications that over 3,000 US citizens had applied to join Ukraine's army. 

(Image: AP)