British soldiers travelling to Ukraine to fight against Russia have been issued a warning by the government and Armed Forces.
Ministers have expressed fears that the presence of British soldiers in Ukraine, who are breaking the law by doing so, could be seen by Russia as an excuse to view the UK as a "belligerent" in the conflict.
A small number of British personnel are believed to have gone absent without leave (AWOL) to join the resistance against the Russian invasion, while veterans and other Brits without combat experience have also travelled to Ukraine.
Read more:
Some veterans have reported receiving cold-call approaches from private militia groups inviting them to fight in Ukraine. Reports have also been raised of militia groups using social media to recruit former soldiers.
It comes shortly after Liz Truss said on February 27 that she would "absolutely" support Brits going to Ukraine to fight "if that's what they want to do". The foreign secretary has been criticised for her remarks which go against the official advice from her department.
Ministers’ concerns about Brits being caught up in the fighting were underlined by Cabinet minister Grant Shapps, who said it risked creating a “dangerous situation” with the Russians. Mr Shapps told troops “you cannot just get up and go”.
His comments came after a 19-year-old Coldstream Guard was reportedly among up to four missing British soldiers feared to have travelled to fight Russia.
The parents of a teenage Subway worker from Warrington are also fearful that their son has left the UK to fight against Russia despite having no military experience.
Jamie, 19, is believed to have left his family behind to fight with the Ukrainian Army over the weekend. He reportedly contacted a London-based organisation last Friday about joining the fight in Ukraine, which replied saying he should only travel if he had relevant experience. "Every day now I'm just waiting for that phone call in the morning, or that text in the morning, to say 'I'm alive, I'm OK'," his mum told ITV.
The government has urged civilians not to travel to Ukraine to fight. However, British soldiers who leave their post to do so are being warned of serious consequences.
What does it mean to go AWOL and what could happen to British soldiers who head to Ukraine?
If someone in the Armed Forces goes AWOL it means they have left their post without the permission of a superior officer.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned that soldiers travelling to Ukraine would face court martial upon returning to the UK. That means they could be tried in court for offences than go against military law, and face prosecution.
This is because the Ministry of Defence (MoD) chiefs have banned all service personnel 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,” a MoD spokesperson said.
What has the government said about British soldiers going to Ukraine?
Asked what his message was to young men thinking of travelling to Ukraine during a visit to Merseyside, Mr Johnson told broadcasters: " “I think that everybody seeing what’s happening in Ukraine will understand those feelings and I think many people, many people in our armed forces, will sympathise because I don’t think I’ve ever seen such clear distinction in international affairs between right and wrong and good and evil in what President Putin is doing to people in Ukraine.
“But we have very clear laws in this country. You shouldn’t go to Ukraine, and I’m afraid people going from our armed services, as the Chief of the Defence Staff made clear the other day, will face court martial.”
Armed forces minister James Heappey said: “It is illegal for British service personnel to, first of all, go absent without leave in the first place, but to go absent without leave in order to fight in a foreign war is simply unacceptable, and frankly risks the United Kingdom being wrongly claimed by Russia to be a belligerent in this.
“Service people who might think they are doing the right thing should reflect it is 100% not the correct thing to be doing.”
He said he heard a small number of serving troops - around three or four - had travelled to Ukraine.
But he added: “It’s not just the very small number of soldiers who have gone Awol apparently to go fight in Ukraine, I would say to the wider veterans community I know… you accept the unlimited liability in the service of your country to stand up for what’s right in the world, that there’s a thing deep inside you as a soldier that makes you see TV images and makes you want to go and fight for what’s right, but no good comes from British service people or veterans going to Ukraine to be a part of this.”
Defence secretary Ben Wallace also stressed that serving soldiers who have reportedly already travelled to the war zone will face a court martial when they return.
He also warned other Brits not to travel to Ukraine, telling them they would not be there for “a selfie and six weeks” but in the war “for real”.
Keep up to date on the Ukrainian conflict via our live blog:
Read more Ukrainian news:
