UK imposes sanctions on networks recruiting migrants for Russia’s war
Photo: Russian army soldiers (Getty Images)
According to the UK Foreign Office, some of these routes were also used to move people into Poland and Finland in order to destabilise the situation there.
Another 18 individuals and organisations were added under the Russia-related sanctions regime. Some of them are linked to the Alabuga Start programme, which the UK Foreign Office described as "a Russian recruitment scheme that hires individuals from outside Russia, usually from economically insecure backgrounds."
It is noted that such people, including those from Cameroon, are sent to Tatarstan, where they work at drone manufacturing facilities.
Sanctions Minister Stephen Doughty said the exploitation of vulnerable people to support Russia’s war is a "barbaric" practice.
He added that the sanctions "disrupt the operations of those trafficking migrants as cannon fodder and feeding (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's drone factories with illicit components."
Russia has been using similar recruitment schemes involving foreign nationals for a long time, including recruiting citizens of African countries with promises of training or legal employment, but in reality, drawing them into the war against Ukraine.
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, more than 1,700 citizens of African countries are serving in Russia’s armed forces.
Following reports of deaths among them, several countries, including Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa, have demanded explanations from Moscow regarding these recruitment practices and the conditions faced by their citizens in Russia.
