On the fourth anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war, the EU ambassador to Nigeria, Gautier Mignot, voiced concern over what he described as a disturbing development — Russia’s recruitment of Nigerians and other Africans to fight in the war.
Mignot, speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Tuesday, said reports from civil society organisations indicate that the recruitment is becoming a growing phenomenon.
“There is another important phenomenon which is impacting Africa, which is recruitment of African men and women by Russia. Women to be sent and work in military plants in Russia and men to be sent as cannon fodder on the front. Of course they are being lured with job promises,” Mignot said.
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The EU ambassador stated that Russia is recruiting from Africa because it is running out of soldiers, describing the practice as crude and harmful to individuals with no connection to the conflict.
“Russia is running out of soldiers, so they have been growingly doing that including with Nigerians, and it’s extremely crude sending these people who have absolutely nothing to do with this war to die on the front.
“Some of them have been captured by the Ukrainian army, and this is something I think African countries have started to react to. We have seen even the Nigerian government publish a communique on this phenomenon of recruitment into war — they did not mention Russia,” he added.
On perceptions that Russia is winning the war, Mignot dismissed the claim, calling it a false impression.
“There are other false perceptions about this war, the impression that Russia is winning the war little by little — no, it is not. There is a stalemate at the front. Actually in the last few weeks it is Ukraine which has reclaimed a few hundred square kilometres of territory,” he said.
He noted, however, that the war is unlikely to be resolved by military means soon and argued that lasting peace requires international pressure on Russia to engage in dialogue.
Russia has denied reports of recruiting Africans for the war in Ukraine, describing the allegations as unfounded.
Mignot maintained that testimonies from Africans recruited for the war support the reports and dismissed Russia’s denial as untrue, saying it reflects an unwillingness to stop the practice.
On February 21, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin recognises the independence of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions, where pro-Russian separatists have been fighting the Ukrainian army since 2014.
Three days later at dawn, Putin announces a major military offensive in Ukraine, which he calls a “special military operation” to “de-Nazify” and “demilitarise” its neighbour.
The four years of war have left tens or hundreds of thousands dead and pushed millions of refugees to flee their homes.
