Ahead of the Russia-Africa summit taking place on October 28–29 in Moscow, prisoners of war who are citizens of African states detained since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine have recorded a video appeal to the meeting participants. According to RBC-Ukraine, the appeal was transmitted through the "I Want to Live" project. In the message, the captives urge representatives of African countries to use their political weight to influence the Russian authorities and achieve the return of their citizens to their homeland.
The summit as a point of pressure
For the detained Africans, the upcoming summit in Moscow is seen as a rare opportunity to publicly raise the issue of their release before an audience that includes heads and representatives of African states. In the recorded appeal, the prisoners of war address their governments, asking not to leave them unattended at a time when the topic of African-Russian relations is at the center of the agenda. The wording "help us return" reflects the essence of the request: it is not about political demands, but about a personal desire to return home.
The issue of exchange and the position of the Coordination Headquarters
According to the Coordination Headquarters, Russia is actively recruiting citizens of African countries to participate in hostilities against Ukraine, but after such individuals are captured, the Russian side, it says, is in no hurry to include them in exchange lists. The Headquarters provides data showing that during the full-scale invasion, representatives of 59 countries have fallen into Ukrainian captivity, including citizens of 18 African states. At the same time, as the Coordination Headquarters notes, over the entire period the Russian side has not taken back a single African prisoner of war in exchanges.
The context of recruitment and appeals from African countries
Earlier, Bloomberg reported that Russia continues to recruit mercenaries in Africa for the war against Ukraine, appealing predominantly to poor countries on the continent. It is separately noted that several African states have already appealed to Ukraine with a request to return their citizens who fought on the side of the occupiers and ended up in captivity. Thus, the issue of returning detained Africans to their homeland is raised not only by the prisoners of war themselves, but also at the intergovernmental level.
Call for safety
The Coordination Headquarters also reminded foreigners that participating in hostilities on the side of the Russian armed forces poses a direct threat to their life and health. This reminder accompanies a public campaign aimed at informing citizens of African countries about the risks associated with recruitment and at drawing the attention of their governments to the fate of compatriots already detained.
