The British Army has confirmed on Thursday that a “small number” of their soldiers have gone Absent without Leave (AWOL) and could be fighting in Ukraine against Russian troops.
An Army spokesperson told Sky News that they soldiers had disobeyed orders by travelling to Ukraine and could face a court martial.
The spokesperson said, a“We are aware of a small number of individual soldiers who have disobeyed orders and gone absent without leave and may have travelled to Ukraine in a personal capacity.
“We are actively and strongly encouraging them to return to the UK.
“All Service Personnel are prohibited from travelling to Ukraine until further notice.
“This applies whether the Service Person is on leave or not.
“Personnel travelling to Ukraine will face disciplinary and administrative consequences.”
Under the Foreign Enlistment Act 1870 UK nations are banned from fighting in “the military or naval service of any foreign state” that is at war with a country the UK is at peace with.
The British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the Government’s position is that service personnel should not travel to Ukraine to fight.
Wallace said, “The Government position is if you are a serving member of the armed forces you will be breaking the law.
“There were reports in a weekend newspaper about three members who had gone AWOL over the weekend.
“They will be breaking the law and they will be prosecuted when they return for going absent without leave or deserting.
“For others, as the government travel advice is don’t go to Ukraine, we strongly discourage them from joining these forces.”
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