Former US Marine colonel training soldiers in Ukraine says 'Russians are worse than ISIS'

• Former US Marine Colonel Andy Milburn said that the Russian military's actions in Ukraine are worse than ISIS.
• The Marine said the Russians had "a very, very deliberate approach to killing civilians," he wrote in Newsweek.

A former US Marine colonel helping train Ukrainian forces has condemned the Russian military's actions as being worse than ISIS.

"I have a greater respect for the ethical behavior of the Islamic State than I do for the Russians. That is no exaggeration," Andy Milburn wrote in an article for Newsweek.

Milburn has served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, and Libya and commanded a special operations task force against ISIS in 2016. He began his career as a second lieutenant and later became a colonel and task force commander.

The Marine said that he was one of the first people in Bucha, Ukraine, after the Russian retreat, where reports have emerged of a civilian massacre in which nearly 300 people were buried in mass graves.

Milburn said that he saw bodies dumped in Bucha, including children.

While noting that civilian casualties are common in war, Milburn said the events in Bucha appeared to be "a very, very deliberate approach to killing civilians."

"People were dragged from their homes and killed, women gang-raped in cellars and executed."

Milburn wrote that he is no stranger to the depravity of war but that Russia's actions left him "filled with the deepest contempt and anger."

Milburn is currently heading up The Mozart Group, which comprises a team of American and British veterans training Ukrainian forces.

The type of training they're providing includes basic tactical training, battlefield clearance, and medical training.

Milburn clarified that despite the similar name, his group is nothing like the "mercenaries" of Russia's Wagner Group.

The Wagner Group is a Russia-backed private military organization that has been repeatedly accused of war crimes and atrocities worldwide.

"I don't want anyone to think we're anything like them, and I don't want anyone to think our sole purpose is to oppose them. We have such contempt for that organization," he said.

Milburn wrote that the Mozart Group has no ties to the government and is funded solely by donations. He said the group would soon have 100 volunteers in Ukraine.

"I don't want to pretend we've changed the course of the war. Honestly, I think a lot of the effect we've had has been intangible," Milburn wrote.

"The Ukrainians seem really excited to have Americans and Brits behind them, helping them and supporting them. I think that's important."

Milburn said that in some areas, Ukrainian forces are better than US and UK troops in some areas, such as understanding drones– which have come to play a crucial weapon of the war.

He said that Ukrainians understand "not just strike drones, but how drones extend the reach of your senses."

"They also understand how to use precision fires, they take basic quadcopters and turn them into deadly weapons. There is some very ingenious stuff going on," Milburn said.

The Marine praised Ukrainian forces for their high morale and their "confidence that the Russians will not win that increases with the more atrocities that they come across."

Milburn said that he suspects the war will last at least a year, and that The Mozart Group will continue with its work in Ukraine.

"We are trying to do more than stick a band aid on the problem, we are trying to build capability and capacity and resilience," he wrote.