Many citizens of various countries including Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Spain, France, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Portugal, Italy, Jordan, Egypt and Norway, in addition to the United States, Canada and Britain had joined the "Norman Brigade", a formation described as a volunteer unit part of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army.

[4] It can be assumed that the Norman Brigade first began as independent or as part of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army, a separate formation that was established after Dmytro Yarosh departed from the Right Sector movement.

A Facebook post published in July 2022, stated that in an undisclosed location, freedom fighters of the Sheikh Mansur Battalion, Wallonia, and the Norman Brigade, met to discuss possible force-multiplying actions, the publication further went on thanking the accompanying units and remarked that "Ukrainians, Chechens, Wallons, and Normans are fighting against a common evil called 'Russian supremacism'.

An article published by the National Post in May 2022, stated that there were allegedly numerous issues with the volunteer unit suggesting it was poorly organised and underequipped.

Moreover, accommodation were described as "dungeon like" with members claiming to receive only two meals a day and sleeping on the floor alongside enduring drafty and damp conditions in a converted schoolhouse used as a training camp as recruitment increased.

This notion was however challenged by the commander 'Hrulf', pointing to text messages of foreign fighters previously leaving the Legion due to the incompetence of the Ukrainian officers.

[14] While some claim it is unclear to what extent such foreigners will make a tangible difference in the war, the commander 'Hrulf' in an interview in early 2022 had stated that they seemed to be a morale-booster for Ukraine's military and civilians.

The brigade further aided the survival and well-being of those affected by conflict by distributing supplies such as food, water, clothing, and other essential items.

Co-initiator Iryna Forostyan said that fighters from Great Britain, France, Belgium, and the United States were fighting for the freedom of Ukraine.

In a video published on Youtube by Social Dnipro the commander of the unit 'Hrulf' was present at the awards ceremony, stating the reasons for fighting in the war was due to the fact that he had a daughter and family that were Ukrainian.

[16] Jean-Francois "Hrulf" Ratelle was a former reservist artilleryman of the Canadian Army from Joliette, Quebec who later joined the French Foreign Legion.

He claimed the Norman Brigade was started as a humanitarian effort to deliver aid in Eastern Ukraine by a group of former Canadian soldiers.

[20] Joshua Jones from the United States, was killed in action at the frontline while under the command of the International Legion of Territorial Defence of Ukraine.

[21] It was acknowledged that Joshua had died during a mission overseen by the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine which involved taking a trench occupied by Russian forces.