Little green men (Russo-Ukrainian war)

The “little green men” were Russian soldiers who were masked and wore unmarked uniforms upon the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2014. They were active just before and during the Russian annexation of Crimea and carried regular weapons and equipment, but were always masked and wore distinctly unmarked green military fatigues. Russia, which had been denying any involvement in Ukraine prior to the annexation, used these little green men to give it plausible deniability on the international stage.