Ukrainian Agency Ranks Nigeria Fifth in Africa for Recruits in Russian Army

By: Ganiyu Olayinka

Nigeria ranks fifth among African countries whose citizens have been recruited into Russia’s armed forces to fight in Ukraine, according to a Ukrainian government-run agency.

StopRussianRecruiters.org, which is partly operated by Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, compiled the figures from local media reports. The agency estimates that at least 215 Nigerians have been recruited, with at least 25 confirmed dead or missing.

Among those reported dead was Ayebusiwa Olabode Victor, a 34-year-old former Nigerian naval officer. Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence announced his death in May, stating that he had signed a military contract in February, approximately one week after Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed concern over the recruitment of Nigerians into the Russian military.

The latest ranking comes after Ukrainian authorities announced the deaths of two other Nigerians, Hamzat Kolawole and Mbah Udoka, who were reportedly fighting on Russia’s side.

According to the authorities, the bodies of the two men were recovered in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine. They said both died in late November during a drone strike while attempting to attack Ukrainian positions. The authorities also alleged that neither man had received adequate military training before being deployed.

Reports indicate that some African nationals are recruited through offers of security-related employment before being sent to the front lines with little or no adequate military training.

The agency ranks Cameroon as the most affected African country, followed by Ghana, Egypt and Kenya, with Nigeria in fifth place.

Russia has denied having any knowledge of a role in recruiting Africans to fight in the war in Ukraine.