A British man says he believed he was joining a campaign against Western “cultural rot” when he signed up to fight for Vladimir Putin’s Russia in Ukraine. Jay Fraser claims he has killed “double digits” of Ukrainian soldiers since signing up last summer.
However, a year on, the Scotsman has also revealed how he has become disillusioned and has “no great love for Russia or her people”. He said he continues to believe in a Kremlin victory “wholeheartedly” but has come to the conclusion that Russia is not the “bastion of common sense” he once wrote that it was. The 24-year-old said: “My entire ideological reasoning for coming here collapsed in on itself; I truly realised that I am a Celt and will never be of the Rus.”
In an interview with The Telegraph, Mr Fraser revealed issues he has faced and shared rare insight into life on the Russian side of the battlefield.
He is one of only a handful of Brits known to have served with Russian forces and was, according to reports, a regular at a Russian Orthodox church before leaving to fight for Moscow.
The former brewery worker joined an artillery mercenary group, Pyatnashka, which has now been incorporated into the Russian military.
Mr Fraser’s first deployment was to Russia’s Kursk region in 2024 to repel a Ukrainian incursion, where he recalled a near miss with a kamikaze drone, before being transferred to a section of the front in Donetsk and now around Kramatorsk, near the strategic city of Bakhmut.
He painted a terrifying picture of the Donetsk battlefield and revealed how last month his unit got “incredibly lucky” after surviving an attack that struck an ammunition stockpile, igniting a large area and triggering secondary explosions.
He shared how stealing among troops is common and claimed soldiers would make friends with him only to borrow money with no intent of ever repaying him.
Mr Fraser, who said he would like to return home but is concerned of possibly facing time in prison, said: “The sort of Gopnik [delinquent youth] alcoholic type are very common here in the military unfortunately.
“Made a lot of great friends, but also been burned a few times which has definitely, again, contributed to me becoming less and less of a Russia lover.”
The Brit explained every two to three weeks his unit is transferred to the rear where they collect their pay packet.
He also revealed how his basic grasp of the Russian language and failed citizenship application have affected his role in the war, with the latter meaning he is confined to base unless accompanied by an officer.
Mr Fraser expressed his frustration over the citizenship rejection, claiming the law states that service with irregular units qualifies him for citizenship.
“There’s no logical reason behind it. We do the exact same work they do, and we’re contracted to the Main Intelligence Directorate of Russia.”
He also shared how his boss can become “stressed” when he doesn’t understand his instructions, although he does receive help from other soldiers.
The Scot says he has “no remorse” over killing Ukrainian troops but said he has “great respect” for them and that “Ukraine as an idea or nation has been proved as valid through the baptism of blood it has gone through”.
However, he told The Telegraph that this view is not widely shared by his fellow soldiers, nor does he believe it is held by the Ukrainians.
It is said despite Mr Fraser having written about losing belief in the Russian system and his views on the war, he has faced no sanction from Moscow.
