Ukrainian military captured two Cameroonians who fought on the side of the Russian Federation. Foreigners gave interviews

Ukrainian military in the Siverskyi direction captured two Cameroonian citizens who fought on the side of the Russian Federation. The prisoners — Metugena Unana Jean Pafe and Anatole Frank — gave interviews.

The Africans were captured in the Siversky direction by fighters from the K-2 battalion together with the 118th Terroir Defense Brigade and two other battalions of the 54th Motorized Rifle Brigade — the 1st Rifle and the 1st Mechanized.

Metugena Unana Jean Pafe said that he went to Russia to work in a shampoo factory, but he was “forced to join the army”. According to him, “everything was under duress”.

Anatol Frank says that he came to Moscow in 2024 for 18 days to have his teeth treated.

"To my surprise, the migration service called me and the other men into the office. They took my fingerprints and a jaw cast. Then they told me what to do — I refused. They blocked me and didnʼt let me go back," he said.

First they were held at the airport for several hours, and then they were put in cars and taken to an unknown destination. Metugena Unana Jean Pafe says that he spent two weeks in Moscow for training, then another week in Rostov, and after that he was in Luhansk for a month. Anatole Frank also says that he underwent training in Rostov.

Both men did not want to join the Russian army, but eventually signed a contract, promising them 1.1 million rubles. This is significantly less than what the regime offers the Russians, but for Cameroon, it is decent money, notes the 20th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment.

Metugen Unana Jean Pafe says that almost immediately after he got to the front, his dugout was shelled — and six days later the man was captured by the Ukrainians.

Anatole Frank says that he was sent on a mission, ordered to "go forward", but he did not know where, and besides, he did not understand the language.

“While I was walking, there were drones overhead. It had been raining for three days, I was in the rain. At some point I hid under a bush. Then I decided to move in the direction of the voices,” he says.

When the Ukrainian military evacuated Franko at night, they were attacked by a Russian drone — two Ukrainian servicemen and the Cameroonian himself were injured.

Anatol Frank says he didnʼt kill anyone. Both prisoners admit that the Russian Federation is the aggressor, and Ukraine is defending itself. They emphasize that they want to return to their homeland, not to the Russian Federation. They have families in Cameroon — one of the prisoners has two sons.

This is not the first time that Ukrainian soldiers have captured foreign mercenaries fighting on the side of the Russian Federation here — previously there was a representative from Yemen. According to the prisoners from Cameroon, there are also representatives from China, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh in the Seversky direction.

• The Kremlin also cooperates with the North Korean army — its soldiers are involved in fighting, in particular in the Kursk region.
• In early April, Ukrainian fighters captured Chinese citizens who were fighting on the side of the Russian Federation. This was the first known case of Chinese military personnel participating in the war against Ukraine on the side of the Russian Federation. Later, Zelensky stressed that Ukrainian special services have information that the Russian army includes at least 155 Chinese citizens.
• In addition, foreigners from India, Nepal, and African countries, including the Republic of Togo, are fighting alongside the Russians. Russia often attracts foreigners to the war with Ukraine through deception — for example, by offering them jobs. Such cases became more frequent at the end of last year.
• Foreign mercenaries from at least 48 countries are fighting for Russia, according to an investigation by the publication "Important Stories". In Moscow alone, more than 1 500 foreigners could have been recruited into the Russian army from April 2023 to May 2024. Most of them are mercenaries from South and East Asian countries. The largest number of foreign mercenaries came to Russia from Nepal.

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