Fourteen men from Ghana were deceived by a labor agent into joining the Russian army.

According to GhanaWeb, which cites an interview with one of the deceived individuals on TV3 News, these residents were promised well-paying jobs in Russia.

The group traveled from Ghana to Russia via Togo on Sunday, August 4, 2024.

Shortly after their arrival, they were taken to Kostroma to sign what they believed was a labor contract. However, it turned out to be a contract for military service with the Russian army for the war in Ukraine.

“Abraham Boakye brought us here. He told us that there were job opportunities here in Russia, namely in security and agriculture. So we paid for the plane ticket and visa ourselves. The military brought us to Russia. He told us it was a security job, but when they brought the contract, we thought it was a contract for our education,” one of the victims told TV3 journalist Godwin Asidiba in an interview.

“On the day we signed the contracts, he was not there. He was in Moscow. So we called him and told him that the military had brought the contract. Should we sign it? Because it was he who brought us. He asked, don’t we trust him?” the man said.

As of September 17, three of the fourteen men remain alive, while the others are missing.

According to GhanaWeb, the Russian embassy in Ghana has not yet responded to the alleged recruitment of Ghanaian migrants to participate in the war against Ukraine.

Forced recruitment of migrants for the war against Ukraine

This is not the first time that migrants from other countries have been forced to sign contracts to join the army in Russia. For example, on September 17, it became known that the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry sent a note to the Russian Foreign Ministry in connection with Azerbaijanis detained in Chechnya. They were allegedly sent to war against Ukraine by force.

On September 13, 2024, it was reported that 45 Indian citizens had been rescued from the war zone and discharged from the Russian military.

According to reports, 45 Indian citizens were illegally recruited to join the Russian army and fight on the front lines against Ukraine. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the issue of their release during his visit to Moscow.

In the spring, Indian intelligence agencies uncovered a large human trafficking network whose members deceitfully recruited young men to Russia, where they were forced to sign contracts with the Russian Defense Ministry and sent to fight in Ukraine.