The French Foreign Ministry announced that a Frenchman died “in fighting” in Ukraine on Friday, 100 days following the Russian invasion. The Quai d’Orsay wrote that they had received the sad news that a Frenchman was killed in the fighting in Ukraine. We send our condolences and sympathies to his family.”
According to AFP security sources, the man was a “fighter who left as a volunteer”. It is not known who this man is or where he died.
French radio Europe 1 reported Thursday that a “first French fighter” was killed in Ukraine. He was “mortally injured by artillery fire” at Kharkiv (northeast). Europe 1 reports that the young man was a member of the Ukrainian International Defense Legion, and had participated in fighting against the Russian army.
Britain also reported late April that one of its nationals had died and another was missing. According to British media, he was a British Army veteran. A Facebook page was set up to pay tribute to his former comrades and a fundraising page was also created. British media reported that the two men were fighting as volunteers against Russian forces.
On Friday, the war in Ukraine reached its 100th birthday. The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zilensky requested the creation of an “international legion”, a group of volunteers from abroad to assist him in defending Ukraine, shortly after Russia invaded his country. In a written response, the Quai D’Orsay stated that Ukraine, on its entire territory is a “war zone”. “In this situation, it is strongly advised to not travel to Ukraine for any reason whatsoever.”