Russian commander reports presence of active NATO soldiers in Kursk area Apty Alaudinov, Akhmat commander and deputy chief of the #Russian Armed Forces’ Main Military-Political Department, suspects there may be active duty service members from #NATO countries serving as #mercenaries in the Kursk area. "You must understand that they have thrown together a ragtag army. And they have deployed as many foreign mercenaries as they could to there," the Russian commander told Rossiya-1 television. "I guess there are people among these foreign mercenaries who are in the military of the NATO bloc," he added. Later, Alaudinov confirmed that he meant active NATO servicemen.