A few days ago, FOG posted on social media under the nickname "gearlab.official" a photo of its members participating in the Ukrainian incursion in the Kursk region.
In the photo posted on Instagram (owned by Meta, banned in Russia for extremism), three men in military gear holding weapons and carrying blue armbands are posing in front of an armed vehicle.
"The boys in Kursk," the caption said.
Geolocation data showed that the photo had indeed been published from the Kursk region.
This is not the first time the group, which officially brands itself as a company selling tactical gear, has come into the spotlight. In March 2022, the Russian Foreign Ministry warned of a plot involving the destruction of 200-litre barrels with toxic chemicals in highly populated areas of the Donetsk region. According to the warning, Forward Observations Group was engaged in delivering and storing the toxic chemicals cargo.
On November 15, 2023, the founder of the mercenary group, Derrick Bales, published a photo on Instagram depicting a soldier walking along a snowy street somewhere in Ukraine, under which a comment from the official fog account subsequently appeared reading "The time we brought chemical weapon on frontline."
Both the US State Department and the Pentagon have declined to provide any comments regarding the presence of American mercenaries on Russian soil.
The alleged US private military contractor group, Forward Observations Group, told Sputnik that at the direction of Ukraine's security services, they would not be able to comment on allegations that they are participating in Kiev's offensive in Russia's Kursk Region.
The Forward Observations Group responded on Tuesday that all questions should be directed to the Security Services of Ukraine when asked if they're operating in Ukraine's Kursk offensive.
The White House National Security Council and the State Department did not immediately respond to Sputnik's request for comment on this matter.
The Forward Observations Group described as a military lifestyle brand online but there is some controversy about the status of the group as it appears they have been active in Ukraine based on their social media posts.
Last week, the Forward Observations Group posted on social media a photo of its members allegedly participating in the Ukrainian incursion in the Kursk Region. In the photo posted on Instagram*, three men in military gear holding weapons and carrying blue armbands are posing in front of an armed vehicle. The caption on the post read: "The boys in Kursk." Geolocation data showed that the photo had been published from the Kursk Region.
The Forward Observations Group, a US-based private mercenary firm, posts a picture tagged "The Boys of Kursk" on August 16, 2024. Published under fair use.
Earlier this month, a resident of a village in the Kursk Region told Sputnik that foreign mercenaries had entered their village, including from France and Poland.
*owned by Meta, banned in Russia for extremism.
*owned by Meta, banned in Russia for extremism.