Twelve Indians who had joined the Russian army to fight on the Ukraine front have died and 18 remain in Moscow’s employment, the external affairs ministry said on Friday.
It added that 16 of these 18 had been declared missing by Moscow, six months after it assured India of their early discharge during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Russia
visit in July.
The subject of Indians joining the Russian army after the Ukraine war began has returned to the spotlight following the death of an Indian recruit from Kerala and injuries to another. External affairs ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal sidestepped the question why Indians remained in the Russian army despite Modi having taken this up with the Russian leadership.
In July, briefing journalists on Modi’s Moscow visit, then foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra had said: “Prime Minister strongly raised the issue of early discharge of Indian nationals who have been misled into the service of the Russian army.”
Kwatra added: “This was taken up strongly by the Prime Minister and the Russian side promised early discharge of all Indian nationals from the service of the Russian army.”
Six months later, the issue persists. “We have been in constant touch with the Russian authorities for early release and repatriation of Indian nationals who are serving in the Russian army,” Jaiswal said.
He added that the government knew of 126 Indians being recruited to the Russian army. Of these, 96 have been discharged and have returned.
“As per our available information, 18 Indian nationals in the Russian army remain. Out of these, 16 individuals’ whereabouts are not known and the Russian side has categorised them as missing,” Jaiswal said.
“We remain engaged with the Russian authorities to ascertain the whereabouts of the missing Indian nationals as also seeking early release and repatriation of those who remain.”
The Russian embassy in New Delhi had in April said the country’s army had stopped recruiting Indians.
This followed complaints by some of the recruits that they had been misled into joining the Russian army on the promise that they would be employed as non-combatant workers and helpers. But they were eventually forced to move to the Ukraine war frontline, they said.