Russia agrees to ban recruitment of Ghanaian nationals for Ukraine war

Russia has agreed to stop the recruitment of Ghanaian nationals to fight the war in Ukraine, Accra said in a statement.

President Putin reportedly gave the assurance on the sidelines of last week’s Russia-Africa summit in Moscow after his Ghanaian counterpart, John Mahama, raised the issue.

Ghana last month said its citizens were being "tricked" into joining the Russian war effort and urged Moscow to do more to halt the practice.

As of mid-August, more than 270 Ghanaians had fought for Russia and at least 62 have been killed in the fighting; an additional 15 are missing.

Now President Putin has said he will ban Ghanaians from participating, whether through irregular recruitment or voluntary enlistment.

Several African countries including Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon and The Gambia have complained that their citizens have been lured to fight under false promises of work or educational opportunities.

Ukrainian officials last week reported that a Botswanan citizen recruited through social media was killed in Ukraine’s Luhansk region.