KATHMANDU: Bibek Khatri, a young Nepali who had enlisted in the Russian military and participated in combat, has been apprehended by the Ukrainian army.

Hailing from the district of Bardiya, Khatri was captured in Avdivka, Ukraine.

Anton Herashchenko, the former deputy minister of internal affairs in Ukraine, has officially confirmed that Khatri is now in Ukrainian custody.

He signed a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense and served in one of the Russian Airborne Forces brigades. Khatri openly admitted that he went to war to kill Ukrainians solely for the sake of money.

“I wanted to return to my mother as a successful man,” he said.

Heraschenko further shared a video of Khatri on Twitter, where the detainee claimed that he joined the Russian army to bolster his country’s economic standing.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia, which commenced in February 2022, has led both nations to recruit individuals of foreign origin into their armed forces.

Bibek Khatri from Nepal, fighting on the Russian side, was taken prisoner by Ukrainian Armed Forces near Avdiivka.

He signed a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense and served in one of the Russian Airborne Forces brigades.

Khatri openly admitted that he went to war to… pic.twitter.com/GlMmV5Hm94

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) October 19, 2023