Migrants In Russia Forced To Fight In Ukraine, Refusal May Lead To Punishment

Migrants living in Russia are being forced to fight alongside Moscow's troops in the war in Ukraine, according to a report published Tuesday.

One such migrant, Anuar, came to Russia in 2018 to look for work. He was, however, imprisoned for drug trafficking and sentenced to Penal Colony Number Six in the Vladimir region. There, Anuar witnessed Russia's infamous Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) forcibly sending Central Asian migrants to the frontlines, BBC News reported.

At the end of last month, the Wagner group had sent Uzbeks, Tajiks and Kyrgyz prisoners to join the war in Ukraine without their consent, Anuar's father told the outlet.

He also added that there have been talks about Russia sending another group of migrants to the war.

The outlet noted that Olga Romanova, director of the civil rights organization Russian Behind Bars, confirmed Anuar's story. She further added that the parents of some of the migrant prisoners have approached her asking for help.

"They were not given a choice. They were told to sign the contract and were sent to the front line like a bag of potatoes," she said.

Initially, Russian authorities only encouraged migrants to voluntarily join the armed forces. However, migrant rights activist Valentine Chupik told the outlet that Russian police officers started occasionally intimidating migrants on the street into signing a military contract, threatening deportation if they refuse to do so.

This is not the first time Russia has been reported to be recruiting migrants to join the war in Ukraine. In November of last year, The Daily Beast reported that the Wagner group was recruiting rebels from jails in the Central African Republic (CAR) to fight alongside Moscow's troops in Ukraine.

Citing two former CAR fighters, the outlet said the recruits were flown to a particular town in the Donbas region and were left to fight on their own. They were also not paid for months of service.

"They (Wagner) said they needed urgent manpower in Mali and Ukraine," an officer of the Central African Republic's military told the publication. "I think more than 20 people we've been holding (for very serious crimes) have been released."

As of January 2023, the Wagner Group was believed to be commanding at least 50,000 fighters in Ukraine, according to the U.K. Ministry of Defense.