Despite Putin’s denials, Russia’s military has welcomed foreign mercenaries from at least 48 nations — iStories

More than a year into the invasion of Ukraine, in September 2023, Vladimir Putin declared that Russia had no need for foreign mercenaries. The nation’s homegrown supply of fighting men was more than enough, he explained. However, according to a new investigation by the news outlet iStories, mercenaries from at least 48 countries have joined the Russian military throughout the war. Journalists studied a leaked copy of Russia’s Unified Medical Information and Analytical System database and calculated that army recruiters in Moscow alone enlisted more than 1,500 foreign nationals between April 2023 and May 2024. All these recruits listed the same address as their place of residence: a single army enlistment center at 5 Yablochkova Street, Building 1. Meduza summarizes what iStories discovered.

The leaked medical records show that the largest number of foreign fighters — 771 people — came from South and East Asian countries. Former Soviet states ranked second (523), followed by African nations (72). When it comes to single countries, the highest number of recruits came from Nepal: iStories found that at least 603 Nepalese nationals passed through the enlistment center on Yablochkova Street. The discovery provides new context to a request from Nepal’s government to the Kremlin in November 2023, seeking to halt the recruitment of Nepalese citizens. The leaked database reveals that this recruitment nevertheless continued. 

iStories also reviewed records showing that the military has welcomed into its ranks several foreign combatants from countries that Moscow has formally blacklisted as “unfriendly” to Russia, including at least 2 U.S. citizens, 2 Latvians, 2 Italians, and other Europeans. Serbia has supplied the most men among the nations Russia considers “friendly,” with eight mercenaries. 

Elsewhere around the world, another 71 mercenaries came from the Middle East, including Egypt (31), Iran (7), Algeria (7), Iraq (2), Syria (1), and Turkey (1). Seventy-two people were recruited from African nations with high unemployment and poverty rates. The top three African countries in terms of recruits were Ghana (26), Cameroon (10), and Senegal (8).

iStories confirmed through open sources that dozens of the foreigners enlisted at the Yablochkova address have participated directly in combat in Ukraine. Some have been killed or captured, while others completed their service contracts and were discharged from the Russian army. However, not every foreigner enlisted at the Moscow recruitment center ultimately served in the Russian military: iStories identified at least 13 foreigners who signed up but left the country within a few days.