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Those who can obtain Russian citizenship in this way include foreigners who have signed or will sign a contract with the Russian armed forces or “other military formations,” a designation that Reuters attributes to the mercenary group Wagner, for example.
According to Reuters, the measure is intended to create additional incentives for foreigners with military experience to apply to join Russia’s ranks.
To obtain citizenship, foreigners must provide documents showing that they have committed to fight for at least one year.
An alarming escalation. According to the US, the Russians have already used missiles from the DPRK in Ukraine
Cubans and Africans
Moscow does not publish data on the number of foreigners fighting on its side against Kiev. However, the information from the Reuters agency showed that among the occupiers there are, for example, Cubans who have already enlisted in the Russian army and received a financial reward for this that is more than a hundred times the average Cuban salary.
Other foreigners include three Africans who were recruited by Wagner’s mercenary group last year. Two of them were killed in battle.
The Daily Beast server also reported on a student from Congo and one from the Central African Republic who also competed for Moscow for an unspecified amount of money.
Fight or lose money
Russian officials tried unsuccessfully to persuade another group of African students studying at the Southern Federal University in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. According to her, the officials tried to convince her to fight on Russia’s side in Ukraine for a financial sum of three to five thousand dollars (about 68-112 thousand crowns).
In addition, they should have threatened them that if they did not accept this offer, the Russian government could refuse to award them a financial scholarship or, on the contrary, increase school fees.
“Three (Russian) officials meet us in our dormitory and try with all their might to convince us to fight for Russia,” a student from Nigeria told the newspaper. “They told us that we could fight in Ukraine for a short time, earn a lot of money and then return to Russia and continue our studies. They met many African students who were told this,” he added.
The Wagners also tried to agitate and recruit mercenaries in Poland
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