Moscow Rejects Extradition of Foreign Criminals Involved in War Against Ukraine

Russian lawmakers have passed a bill refusing to extradite foreign criminals who agreed to fight against Ukraine.

The changes are being made to the criminal procedure code, according to The Moscow Times.

They stipulate that the Russian Federation will not extradite foreign citizens to other countries when the relevant requests concern those who are serving or have served in the Russian Armed Forces and “other military formations of the country” and have participated in combat operations as part of the Russian army.

Earlier, The Telegraph reported that since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has recruited about 18,000 citizens from 128 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, of whom at least 3,300 have been killed.

The adopted bill aims to further increase the number of foreigners who can be recruited to attack Ukraine, while the confirmed losses of the Russian army alone exceed 200,000 people.

However, many foreigners are lured into the Russian army by deception. People from poor countries who do not know Russian are promised high salaries and jobs in the civilian sector, but upon arrival, they are forced to sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense and sent to the front.

Amid this, the governments of many countries from which future mercenaries travel to Russia have begun to demand that Moscow stop the practice of luring their citizens into war.