Norwegian-trained special forces are fighting on the Russian side in Ukraine – NRK Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country

Several sources tell NRK that several Norwegian-trained special soldiers from Afghanistan have been enlisted for the war in Ukraine. The soldiers were part of the Afghan Special Police Department Crisis Response Unit 222 (CRU).

When NATO and Norway left Afghanistan in August 2021, the Afghan government collapsed, and the Taliban took control of the entire country in record time.

The crisis put the Norwegian-trained special soldiers and their families in a very demanding situation. Their mortal enemies in the Taliban now had all the power in the country. Some of the special forces were evacuated to Norway, while others went into hiding or went to Iran to escape the Taliban and to find new work.

Over the past year, several of these soldiers have been recruited by Russian agents in Iran for the war in Ukraine.

– A short time ago, a group of seven people and another of 25 were recruited to fight with the Russians in the Ukraine war. The soldiers were recruited in two different cities in Iran, but they have not traveled to Ukraine yet, says an Afghan colonel to NRK.

– At first I didn’t believe it, but the soldiers in Iran sent me a recruitment form, he continues.

Today he lives in Norway after being evacuated in 2021. He wishes to remain anonymous because of the safety of his family in Afghanistan.

He has daily contact with former CRU soldiers in Afghanistan and Iran.

Promised salary and a Russian passport

NRK has gained access to a recruitment form that is distributed to the Afghan ex-soldiers in Iran.

In the form, the soldiers are asked to state which departments they have worked for in the past, their home address in Afghanistan and references.

The soldiers are promised a monthly salary of 1,500 US dollars and an offer of a Russian passport after six months of service.

NRK has spoken to a former CRU soldier who is now fighting on the Russian side of the war in Ukraine. The man in his 30s works as a mercenary for Putin’s private army, the notorious mercenary organization Wagner.

In the meat grinder of death

The soldier is located in the city of Bakhmut. It is referred to as a “meat grinder” and a “hell on earth”. Since last summer, there has been fierce fighting in the small town and thousands of soldiers have lost their lives on both sides of the conflict.

The situation in Bakhmut is demanding, and in a short telephone conversation with NRK, the man confirms that he was a CRU soldier in Afghanistan, that he was recruited in Iran, and that he now works as a mercenary for Wagner in Ukraine. Before he has to break off the conversation, the former CRU soldier says that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is helping Russian agents with the recruitment of Norwegian-trained special soldiers.

His wife, whom NRK has met in Afghanistan, gives NRK access to a recording of a telephone conversation she had with him a few weeks ago.

There he says, among other things:

“I regret that I left. here there are fierce battles, there is little sleep and people are killed everywhere.

Right now it is not possible to get out of here. Russian authorities are not helping us as they did in the past.”

He goes on to say that he is tired:

“I’m not feeling well and I’m very tired. There are a lot of fights here. It’s not clear when it will end.

Just pray for us. Allah is Most Merciful. I look forward to finding a possible way to get home.”

Both the wife and the soldier wish to remain anonymous.

The young woman, who has several children, does not want to be photographed for security reasons, but wants to tell about the dramatic situation for her husband in Ukraine.

According to the wife, her husband traveled to Iran seven months ago, but one day he called home and said he was in Ukraine.

– My husband was a soldier in the CRU, but when the Taliban took over power in the country, there was no work for him anymore. In addition, it was dangerous for him to stay in Afghanistan, since the Taliban were hunting CRU soldiers, she tells NRK.

Therefore, he decided to go to Iran to work. There he was recruited by Russia and sent to Ukraine to fight, according to her.

The wife also shares photos and other documents with NRK showing that her husband was in the CRU unit.

We took the photos of two Afghan CRU officers who live in two different cities in Norway. Both confirmed that the soldier in the photo is a former CRU soldier.

NRK has spoken to several former GRU soldiers in Norway. They say that several of their former colleagues have enlisted as mercenaries. They do not know how many are or have been in combat in Ukraine.

Several international media, including The New York Times and Al-Jazeera, have written about Afghan special forces who are now working for Putin’s war in Ukraine

The embassy denies

NRK has submitted the information in this case to Den Iranian Embassy in Norway.

– We strongly reject the baseless claim about the recruitment of Afghan forces in Iran for the war in Ukraine, and we consider this ridiculous claim to be part of the Iranophobia policy, they write in an email to NRK.

– Recruitment is taking place, there is no doubt about it

Lieutenant Colonel Geir Martin Steindal knows well the CRU unit, which was established by the Norwegian Defense Forces in 2007.

Steindal has been to Afghanistan several times and has kept in touch with many of the soldiers even though he retired in 2020.

He also knows the Afghan colonel whom NRK has interviewed in Norway.

– The CRU soldiers are very skilled, they have received good training and good support from the Norwegian Armed Forces’ special forces to develop their tactics, says Steindal.

– They put many Taliban people in prison. Now these individuals are free and seeking revenge, and the CRU soldiers are being hunted by the Taliban. That is why they escape to Iran, he continues.

He does not know anyone personally who has been drafted into the war in Ukraine.

– Russia is interested in people who can use weapons and fight. They need combat power and I don’t think it is very important whether these soldiers survive or not, says Steindal.

NRK has submitted the information in this case to the Russian Embassy in Norway, but has so far not received a reply.

Warns that more people may be recruited

The Afghan colonel in Norway believes that the economic and political situation in Afghanistan is pushing more soldiers to travel to Iran, and later enlist as mercenaries for Russia. He believes Norway must help before it is too late.

– A salary of 1,500 dollars a month is a lot of money for an Afghan soldier who has nothing before. The soldiers have to help their families in Afghanistan. They have no choice. They are either killed by the Taliban or starve to death, he explains.

The colonel says that he is called daily by former CRU soldiers in Afghanistan.

– They say that they has been promised help to get to Norway, but that nothing has happened yet. For a long time I asked the soldiers to wait and said that help was on the way, but now they don’t believe me anymore, he says.

Was promised help by the Norwegian authorities

The Norwegian authorities evacuated 115 people from the CRU unit in 2021. With family members included, the number is a total of 525 people. According to Lieutenant Colonel Steindal, the Norwegian authorities were supposed to pick up more, but that did not happen.

– Regering was to make an arrangement for those who remained. Instead, there was an official message that Norway will not help any more, says Steindal.

“It is not envisaged that additional personnel in the Crisis Response Unit (CRU), who have been mentored by Norwegian soldiers, will be covered by this scheme. This group has never been employed by the Norwegian authorities,” the government wrote in March 2022.

Steindal believes Norway has a moral responsibility to help these soldiers.

– We have supported this group financially and militarily, and so we have regained fighting power which has given us security in Kabul, among other places. Suddenly we leave and then they are left, he says.

Unfortunate

NRK has submitted the information in this case to the Norwegian Armed Forces, and ppolice officer Per Espen Strande writes in an e-mail to NRK:

– CRU 222 personnel were Afghan special police who received training from Norwegian forces. Their primary task was counter-terrorism in the Kabul area.

If NRK’s ​​information is correct, and some of these soldiers are now working as mercenaries on the Russian side in Ukraine, then of course this is unfortunate.

It hurts that the soldiers are fighting for Russia

The Afghan colonel in Norway says that it hurts to see CRU soldiers travel to Ukraine and fight on the Russian side of the war.

– I warn them against traveling to Ukraine. I tell them if you choose to leave, they are no longer one of us, says the colonel.

He is grateful that he and others were able to come to Norway. At the same time, he hopes that Norway, together with other European countries, can accept the soldiers who remain in Afghanistan.

– These soldiers assisted Norway for 14 years. It is important that they get help now, he says.