Russian propaganda spreads information that foreign mercenaries are not legal combatants and are not subject to the Geneva Convention. At the same time, they claim that those who fight against Ukraine are volunteers and should be protected. These messages were refuted in EU vs DISINFO: "The nationality of the soldier is irrelevant ... Combatants are members of the armed forces in the conflicts or are volunteers. The fact that a person is a citizen of a third country and not a citizen of the armed forces in which he serves is considered irrelevant when it comes to determining the status of a participant in hostilities or prisoners of war," experts say. That is, it is enough for foreigners to officially be part of any Armed Forces unit to protect their rights. That is why the Foreign Legion is officially an Armed Forces unit.