Bradley Townsend, 33, a fisherman from Burnley with no combat experience, has become the first British national to die fighting for Russia in Ukraine. He was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack as he approached the contested city of Liman, just over two months after flying to Moscow.
Recruitment and death
Townsend told friends he was going on holiday to Romania before travelling to Russia, where he met convicted racist Aiden Minnis, who has been recruiting Britons to fight for Vladimir Putin's invasion. Minnis, a Russian propagandist and soldier originally from Chippenham, announced Townsend's death online.
Minnis said: 'Bradley Spencer Townsend, call sign “Badger”, our beloved comrade-in-arms went into the storm and fell on the battlefield near Liman.' He added that Townsend 'made the journey from Great Britain to Russia, he chose to walk in his Grandfather’s footsteps and answered the call to fight fascism.'
Motivation and background
Townsend had filmed YouTube videos explaining his decision to fight, saying he was fighting for Russia because Donbas miners had sent support to his own mining family during the 1980s strikes. In a video interview in April, he described himself as 'a normal working-class lad from Yorkshire' who wanted to support Russian separatists.
He said: 'I came with the idea that I probably wouldn’t be able to go home. I’d definitely get persecuted if I went back. I’m not here for a suicide mission, but I understand that’s what can happen. This was my own decision, I wasn’t pushed into anything.' Friends described Townsend as 'vulnerable' and claimed he had struggled with addiction issues, making him more susceptible to being indoctrinated into Russia's cause.
Reactions and context
Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat had previously criticised Townsend's decision to join the Russian army, saying: 'This is incredibly stupid and deeply wrong. You are joining an army that is committing some of the most brutal war crimes the world has seen in decades.'
The death comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly pleaded for more US-made Patriot interceptor missiles as Kyiv's stocks have diminished. Supplies of Patriots have been diverted to the Middle East since the outbreak of war with Iran, with Ukraine receiving significantly fewer missiles this year than in previous years. Russia has stepped up its ballistic missile strikes, killing at least 23 people and wounding more than 100 in the past three days alone.
