A British man fighting in Ukraine said that the Russian army was so barbaric that his unit vowed never to live

• An international volunteer fighting in Ukraine said his department vowed never to be alive by Russia.

• Macer Gifford told Bi that Putin saw it as a “war of annihilation” and adopted the tactics of ISIS.

• Gifford issued a clear warning to onlookers, who saw it as a “war on the edge of Europe.”

An international volunteer fighting in Ukraine told Business Insider that Russia’s armed forces are so famous for their cruel reputation that his troops agreed to never be alive.

Russian troops “very dangerous, fanatical or desperate people who, if they catch you, they will torture you and kill you.”

Veterans of the Ukrainian army previously volunteered to fight in Syria, and Gifford fought at major Ukrainian sites, including Coulson and Lehman.

His authorized narrative with BI talks about the reality of fighting Russia and the difficult decisions his unit must make.

“Every Depth of Fallen”

A joint investigation last year found that while some Russians reported torture and ill-treatment in the hands of Ukrainian kidnappers, it mostly happened at the captive site, “and stopped when the prisoners arrived at the official detention site.”

Not so Russian. The investigation said prisoners of war had “widespread and systematic torture and ill-treatment” throughout Russia’s entire detention system. It said this includes assault, electric shock, sexual violence, choking, sleep deprivation and mock executions.

The BBC reported that Ukrainian soldier Oleksandr Matsievsky became the reason for Célèbre after he was forced to be excavated before being imprisoned.

“Russia has entered every depth of depravity you might imagine,” Gifford said.

That’s why his department signed the covenant — even expelled a member who tried to surrender during the firefight. An agreement was reached for “no one in the unit can live”.

Gifford, who admitted that all wars were violent, said he was “really shocked” by the fight with Russia.

Learn from ISIS

Gifford believes that the Russian army has learned many more cruel tactics in Syria.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has provided military support to Syria’s then-President Bashar Assad since 2015, and has provided military equipment and air strikes since 2015 to postpone rebel groups, including the Islamic State, also known as ISIS.

But that’s what the jihadist groups seem to provide an example for Ukraine, Gifford said.

He said the “level and scope” of Russian barbarism against civilians reminded him that it was “the same strategy as the ISIS used.”

Gifford recalls that during his battle in Syria, he would find chains next to cages, torture instruments and mattresses because they held female captives in areas controlled by the Islamic state.

“I think ISIS is a fringe, and it’s a unique thing, but he thinks, “many of their cruel practices have been adopted by Russia, mainly because they are very effective in Syria,” he added.

Russia’s war machine

Gifford described Russia’s war machine as “very big and incredible danger.”

But despite Russia’s leading scale – its military is working to grow to 1.5 million active troops, its troops have been “banked” in Ukraine, he said.

Gifford said Russia’s approach to the war was about scale and a “meat wave” attack, in which many shocking casualties could tolerate.

He added that the “real differences” between countries boil down to “the way they value life.” “The Ukrainians are fighting for their lives. Russia is just fighting for more territory, and that’s the difference.”

But Gifford stressed that Ukraine’s allies need to stop viewing war as “conflict on the edge of Europe”, and for Putin, that means more.

Gifford said it was “a war of annihilation” for him. This is “a war that ends all wars in the eyes of Vladimir Putin”.

Russia often denies allegations of war crimes. The Russian Ministry of Defense did not respond to a request for comment.

Read original articles about business insiders