Uganda confirms death of 27 citizens in Ukraine war: they were recruited into the Russian army

The Ugandan Embassy in Moscow has sent a diplomatic letter to the Foreign Ministry of its country, reporting the death or disappearance of 27 Ugandan citizens who were serving in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and participating in combat operations in Ukraine. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Reuters. According to the diplomatic mission, the deaths of 11 Ugandans have been confirmed — their bodies were recovered, while 16 individuals are listed as missing: their bodies were found neither at the battle sites nor among prisoners of war. An official from the Ugandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs publicly confirmed the authenticity of the received letter, which lends the report an official status.

Diplomatic channel and verification of facts

According to the text of the letter, the information about the fate of the Ugandan citizens was passed to the embassy through the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs as part of a standard diplomatic exchange. This means that Russian authorities at the foreign policy department level have documented the deaths and disappearances of these individuals, although in public discourse, Moscow consistently denies the very fact of illegal recruitment of citizens from African states. The authenticity of the document was confirmed by a representative of the Ugandan MFA, which excludes the possibility of forgery or erroneous attribution.

Systemic problem of African recruitment

The case involving the 27 Ugandans is not isolated. According to data from Kyiv announced last year, more than 1,400 citizens from three dozen African countries are fighting on the side of the Russian armed forces in Ukraine, and a significant portion of them were recruited through deception under the pretext of employment. African men are increasingly being attracted to Russia with promises of high-paying jobs, only to find themselves on the front lines. The issue is causing growing anger in countries such as Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa, where families of the missing are demanding that their governments protect their citizens.

Moscow's reaction and requests from African countries

Russian authorities deny the illegal recruitment of African citizens for participation in combat operations in Ukraine. At the same time, several African countries have already appealed to Kyiv with requests to return their citizens who fought on the side of the Russian Federation and were taken prisoner. Previously, it was reported that Russia had recruited over a thousand Kenyan citizens. Thus, the death of 27 of its compatriots, confirmed by Uganda, becomes another documented episode within the systemic problem of involving African citizens in combat operations, which Moscow does not acknowledge as illegal.

Context and prospects

The letter from the Ugandan embassy, received through the diplomatic channel of the Russian MFA, represents a rare case where a "donor" country officially records the losses of its citizens in a foreign army. For Uganda, which traditionally maintains a neutral position in international conflicts, this creates additional diplomatic pressure. Whether Kampala will make formal claims against Moscow or demand compensation for the families of the deceased remains open at the time of publication. Experts note that the growing number of confirmed cases of African citizens dying in Russian ranks may become a trigger for collective action at the African Union level.