First Russian soldier reportedly dies in Libya, where the Kremlin says there are no Russian troops

Earlier this week in a small village in the Orenburg region, Russia buried Gleb Mostovoi, the first Russian soldier to die in Libya, according the local website Orengrad, which first reported Mostovoi’s death on February 6. The BBC’s Russian-language service, which could not confirm where Mostovoi died, says this would be the first Russian soldier killed in Libya. A senior district official told the outlet that Mostovoi was a commissioned officer in the Russian military, not a mercenary.

According to the BBC, police refused to admit journalists to a memorial service that preceded Mostovoi’s burial. After the authorities reviewed several reporters’ credentials, the journalists were forced to leave the village entirely.

Russian defense officials deny the presence of Russian troops in Libya. In January 2020, commenting on reports about the activities of the “Wagner” private military company in the North African country, Vladimir Putin emphasized that this group “does not represent the interests of the Russian state” and said it receives no government funding.

The BBC also notes that the Kremlin has the legal authority to deploy troops to Libya, thanks to approval granted by the Federation Council in 2015 (ahead of Moscow's intervention in Syria) to use Russia’s armed forces abroad.