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The Georgian national flag flying on March 24, 2023, in Tbilisi, Georgia. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Another Georgian volunteer fighter, 34-year-old Vaso Kardava, was killed in Ukraine, the Civil.ge media outlet reported on Aug. 12, citing a confirmation from Georgia's Foreign Ministry.

Kardava was reportedly killed by a Russian artillery strike in the area of Soledar-Siversk in Donetsk Oblast. He had been fighting in Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, the Georgian media outlet Mtavari reported.

Kardava was an internally displaced person originally from Abkhazia, a Georgian region that has been occupied by Russia and its proxy forces since the early 1990s.

In comments to The Kyiv Independent in February, the Georgian Legion, one of the leading groups of Georgian volunteer fighters, said that at least 59 Georgian fighters had been killed in battle since the beginning of the full-scale war.

More casualties among their ranks have been reported since then.

At the same time, there have been conflicting accounts of the true death toll of Georgians fighting in Ukraine.

Civil.ge said that at least 55 Georgian fighters have been killed in Ukraine, while Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Georgian service said that at least 60 have been killed.

Georgians likely rank first among foreign fighters killed fighting for Ukraine
Estimates vary, but Georgian media approximates that between 50-60 Georgian soldiers have been killed fighting for Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022, making it likely the highest death toll of any foreign nationality fighting on the Ukrainian side.
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