The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is looking into reports that a Filipino national has died while fighting for Russian forces in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Military Intelligence reported that the Filipino, identified only as John Patrick, was killed in Kramatorsk District in the Donetsk region.
According to the Ukrainian agency’s statement on Telegram, he served in Russia’s 9th Battalion, 283rd Regiment, 144th Motorized Rifle Division, part of the 20th Combined Arms Army.
The report said he was killed during a so-called “meat assault,” an attack on Ukrainian positions with high casualty rates, similar to other foreign fighters on the front lines.
The conflict between Ukraine and Russia began in February 2022 when Russia launched a full-scale invasion, sparking Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Russia now occupies roughly 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory.
