Ghana calls on Russia to stop illegally recruiting Ghanaians for war against Ukraine

Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Ghana, has said that 62 Ghanaians have been killed in Russia's war against Ukraine, and that he discussed efforts to end the illegal recruitment of Ghanaian citizens with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Source: Kremlin-aligned Russian news agencies TASS and Interfax-Russia

Quote from TASS: "According to the minister [Ablakwa – ed.], he also discussed with Lavrov the issue of ending the illegal recruitment of Ghanaian citizens for the SMO." [The Russians refer to their unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine as "the special military operation" (SMO) – ed.]

Details: Ablakwa said this during a press conference following a meeting with Lavrov on 17 August. The Ghanaian minister reported that 62 Ghanaians have been killed in Russia's war against Ukraine and 15 are considered missing.

According to Interfax, Ablakwa said he and Lavrov have agreed to work together "to stop the illegal recruitment of these Ghanaians".

Lavrov said Russia will consider Ghana's requests regarding its citizens in the Russian armed forces, adding that similar requests have come from other countries as well.

Meanwhile, the Russian foreign minister claimed that contracts for military service are overseen by Russia's Ministry of Defence and that information about their terms is publicly available. He said some had signed contracts "out of solidarity with a country that had also helped them fight racism", while others had done so "for financial reasons".

Background:

• In February, Ukraine's acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met with Ablakwa in Kyiv, marking the first standalone visit by an African foreign minister to Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion. Sybiha said that more than 1,700 mercenaries from 36 African countries were fighting in the Russian Armed Forces against Ukraine and that Moscow was fraudulently recruiting them for the war.
• On 16 August, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry stated that at least 2,982 individuals from 37 African countries have been recruited into Russia's armed forces. Of them, 486 are known to have been killed.
• According to the Foreign Ministry, Russian intelligence services employ a broad arsenal of manipulative methods to recruit Africans, aimed at coercion and deception, including promises of civilian employment or education, Russian citizenship, and high pay.
• In many cases, foreign nationals are forced to sign military contracts in Russian under threat of deportation or imprisonment.

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