Khodakovsky said that the "overwhelming majority" of his men came from eastern Ukraine. According to &lt;a href="Radio%20Free%20Europe/Radio%20Liberty"&gt;Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty&lt;/a&gt;, Vostok reportedly includes former members of the original Vostok Battalion, a special forces unit of the Russian intelligence directorate (GRU) that participated in the Second Chechen and Russo-Georgian Wars. The original battalion was incorporated in 2009 into a Russian Defence Ministry reserve unit that is based in Chechnya. Khodakovsky said he had about 1,000 men at his disposal, and that more "volunteers" with experience in the Russian security sector were expected to join the battalion. A report by Radio Free Europe said that there were suspicions that the battalion was either created directly by the GRU, or that it was at least sanctioned by it. The battalion includes both fighters from Russia and from Ukraine. A BBC News report said that the battalion was composed largely of untrained locals from eastern Ukraine, with a smattering of Russian volunteers. Colombian and United States citizens have volunteered in Vostok battalion. A number of the Vostok insurgents were killed at the First Battle of Donetsk Airport. 30 bodies were repatriated to Russia after the fighting. Some of the members said they received salaries of 100 US dollars a week, though they maintained that were only volunteers. An Armenian volunteer in the unit said the battalion was composed of Slavs, and that roughly 80% of militants were from Russia.