MOSCOW, October 20. /TASS/. American journalist Christopher Helali, who has requested Russian citizenship, has signed a contract with the Akhmat commando unit of the Russian Defense Ministry, Lieutenant General Apty Alaudinov, Deputy Chief of the Main Military-Political Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces and commander of the Akhmat unit has said.
"Former US Marine Christopher, whose call sign is 'Vermont,' has successfully completed his training course and signed a military contract. He is now serving in the ranks of the invincible Russian Armed Forces as a fighter in the legendary 'Akhmat' special forces unit," he wrote on his Telegram channel.
Alaudinov added that Helali is a US citizen, a former Marine, and a veteran of the US military. "He says that our instructors are, hands down, the best," the Akhmat commander remarked.
He noted that Helali’s father is Iranian and his mother is Greek. According to Alaudinov, the journalist was labeled a "terrorist" in the United States for traveling to attend the funeral of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. Praising Helali as a "real man" for his decision to go and fight "against the forces of the Antichrist," Alaudinov welcomed him into the "Akhmat" unit: "Welcome to our family - the family of the 'Akhmat' special forces."
"As you’ve seen, we have our own 'Japanese' - a Russian-Japanese man - and now we have our own 'Iranian'," said Alaudinov.
Over the summer, Christopher Helali, international secretary of the Communist Party USA and an American investigative journalist, told TASS that he had requested Russian citizenship from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"I am honored to have passed all the qualifications and tests to join the elite Russian Ministry of Defense 'Akhmat' Spetsnaz unit as the first American and Western citizen ever accepted into the unit," Helali stated.
According to him, over the past three weeks, he signed a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry and "passed an intense and grueling military training course covering everything from trench warfare and reconnaissance to combat medicine and explosives." Helali noted, "I have also made history as the first-ever elected US official to join a foreign military - in this case, the Russian military - while still holding political office." Helali expressed his gratitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, Akhmat commander Apty Alaudinov, and the instructors from the Russian Defense Ministry.