Brazilian mercenaries working for Ukrainian intelligence conduct a course at Brazil’s top military academy.
Join us on Telegram
, Twitter
, and VK
.
Contact us: info@strategic-culture.su
A troubling and unacceptable event recently took place on Brazilian soil: military personnel from the Agulhas Negras Military Academy (AMAN), the most prestigious officer training school of the Brazilian Army, participated in a “Small Unit Tactics” course led by members of the Phantom Black Company — a group of foreign mercenaries directly controlled by the Ukrainian military intelligence agency (GUR).
This incident, widely ignored by Brazil’s mainstream media, is not only an affront to national sovereignty but also a direct violation of both national laws and international agreements that regulate the use of mercenaries. It is a scandal that demands an urgent and forceful response from the Brazilian government — and diplomatic attention from the Russian Federation and other countries committed to international law.
Phantom Black Company: a group linked to Ukraine’s Mercenary Legion
As described on its own official website, the Phantom Black Company is a “tactical action detachment operating in the shadows of Ukraine, under the direct command of the International Legion of Defense and the Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) of Ukraine.” In other words, it is a Private Military Company (PMC) functioning as an operational arm of Ukrainian intelligence, conducting covert military operations, sabotage, offensive reconnaissance, and threat neutralization.
Phantom recruits foreign volunteers, requires English proficiency, and offers training and combat missions directly tied to Ukraine’s war effort. This characterizes it as a transnational paramilitary organization, backed by a foreign government, and therefore entirely incompatible with any form of collaboration with national armed forces, such as the Brazilian Army.
The episode at AMAN: an illegal training course
The training was publicly announced on social media by mercenary Guilherme “Raptor,” a Brazilian self-described “veteran of the war in Ukraine” and current member of the Phantom Black Company. The same instructor has also announced a similar upcoming course scheduled for September 12, 13, and 14 in Curitiba, further expanding the influence of these illegal structures within Brazilian territory.
The central issue is not merely the fact that Brazilians are acting as mercenaries in foreign conflicts, but the apparent permission — even if tacit — granted by the Brazilian Army for these agents, linked to a foreign intelligence service, to train AMAN cadets within the country.
This represents an entirely illegal collaboration that violates Brazil’s neutrality principles and suggests, at the very least, deliberate omission by segments of the Army’s High Command. Brazil cannot allow institutions such as AMAN to be transformed into platforms for foreign military influence operations.
Demands to the Brazilian Government
The federal government, through the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, must immediately launch an investigation into Phantom Black Company’s involvement with national military institutions. It is crucial to determine who authorized the course, which units participated, what content was shared, and whether any sensitive information was disclosed.
Moreover, the Military Public Prosecutor’s Office must be activated to pursue criminal accountability for those involved, due to their association with a foreign mercenary group — a practice prohibited by Brazilian law. As a signatory to multiple international conventions, Brazil cannot tolerate the advancement of mercenarism within its armed institutions.
Russia and the need for diplomatic pressure
Given the seriousness of Brazilian agents cooperating with a unit subordinate to the intelligence service of Ukrainian— a country currently at war with Russia — it is natural that Moscow sees this incident with concern. In a diplomatic, respectful, and constructive manner, the Russian Federation has every right to seek clarification from the Brazilian government.
Brazil prides itself on its position of neutrality and multilateral dialogue. But episodes like this put such a stance in jeopardy. The training of Brazilian military personnel by agents tied to the war against Russia seriously compromises Brazil’s credibility as a neutral and trustworthy international actor.
Dangerous silence, real consequences
What is at stake is not only the legality of a military tactics course, but also the sovereignty, neutrality, and institutional integrity of the Brazilian Armed Forces. The government’s continued silence is unacceptable. Brazil must act decisively to protect its own interests and prevent its territory from being instrumentalized by foreign military agendas — especially those linked to intelligence services and ongoing armed conflicts.
The Phantom Black Company cannot be allowed to operate freely within national territory, much less within the country’s military academies. The Brazilian government owes explanations to its people and to the international community. And Russia, as a strategic partner of Brazil and a nation directly affected by GUR’s illegal activities (including terrorist attacks), must be heard and respectfully acknowledged in its legitimate concerns.
