Mercenaries from at least 48 countries are fighting on Russiaʼs side in a full-scale war against Ukraine. In Moscow alone, more than 1 500 foreigners could be recruited into the Russian army from April 2023 to May 2024.
This is stated in the investigation of the publication "Important Stories" after a leak from a unified medical information and analytical system.
All foreign recruits who joined the Russian Armed Forces in Moscow indicated the address of residence of the only selection point for a contract — Yablochkova Street, 5, Building 1.
Journalists managed to establish the origin of more than 1,300 foreigners who passed through the Moscow selection point between April 2023 and May 2024. In first place in terms of number are mercenaries from the countries of South and East Asia (771 people). In second and third place are the countries of the former USSR (523 people) and Africa (72 people).
However, the largest number of foreign mercenaries came to Russia from Nepal. At least 603 citizens of this country visited the recruitment point on Yablochkov. This is despite the Nepalese authorities having asked the Kremlin not to recruit citizens of the country into the Russian army. However, recruitment continues.
Citizens of countries that the Russian government itself considers “unfriendly” are also joining the war on Russia’s side. Among them are two US citizens, as well as residents of European countries, including Latvia (4 people), France (2), Italy (2), and others. The largest number of foreigners from Europe came from Serbia, a country that the Russian Federation considers “friendly.”
Another 71 mercenaries came from the Middle East, most of whom came from Egypt (31 people), Iran (7), Algeria (7), Iraq (2), Syria (1), Turkey (1) and others. Another 72 people were recruited to the Russian army from African countries with high unemployment and poverty. Most of them came from Ghana (26 people), Cameroon (10) and Senegal (8).
Open data confirms that dozens of foreigners registered at the Yablochkova St. fought in Ukraine on the side of Russia. Some of them either died, were captured, or completed their contract service and left the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces. At the same time, several mercenaries left Russia the next day or a few days after their visit to Yablochkov.
- Russia often recruits foreigners into its war with Ukraine through deception, such as offering jobs. Such cases became more frequent late last year. In February 2024, Ukrainian intelligence published a list of Syrian mercenaries recruited by Russia for the war against Ukraine, which included 141 people.
- Currently, there are established facts of recruitment into the Russian army of citizens of Nepal, India, Syria, Serbia and Somalia. The Russian Federation also recruited illegal migrants from the Finnish border into its army who were trying to get to the EU through Russia. As for citizens of Nepal and India, some of them are already in captivity or have died. There are already videos on social networks with Africans as part of the Russian occupation forces in Ukraine.
- In April 2025, Volodymyr Zelensky said that two Chinese citizens who fought as part of the Russian army were captured in the Donetsk region.
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