Chechens fighting for Ukraine see chance to 'free' their homeland
BAKHMUT, Ukraine/KYIV, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Speaking amid the boom of artillery on Ukraine's frontlines, the masked soldier said his ultimate goal was to liberate a land farther east - the Russian republic of Chechnya.
Maga, his nom-de-guerre, is part of a unit of Chechen fighters helping Ukraine battle Russian troops in eastern Ukraine.
Many of his kinsmen also famously support the other side - powerful Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov calls himself Russian President Vladimir Putin's "foot soldier" and sent members of his personal army to Ukraine to fight for the Russians.