The Russia-Ukraine War has devastated both nations since its beginning. However, its physical impacts are starting to impact other nations, particularly those in Kenya. The Kenyan National Intelligence Service (NIS) has released its findings on Russia’s fraudulent recruitment. Fraudulent recruitment is the promise of a high-paying job in exchange for relocation or personal information. In the case of Kenya, fraudulent recruitment is the promise of a high-paying job (up to 350,000 Kenyan Shillings/$2,000) in exchange for relocation to Russia. According to the BBC and Al Jazeera, many individuals who accept these jobs end up on the Russian front lines.

According to the BBC, Kenyan parliament majority leader, Kimani Ichung’wah, presented a network of rogue state officials that, allegedly, were essential to the recruitment and transport of Kenyan victims. Ichung’wah alleged these officials were collaborating with the staff at the Russian embassy in Nairobi and the Kenyan embassy in Moscow to obtain visas. The Russian embassy denied these claims, responding,  “‘At no point in time throughout the ongoing crisis in Ukraine [has] the Embassy ever issued visas to Kenyan citizens who sought to travel to Russia with the stated pose of participating in the Special Military Operation (SMO) in Ukraine.’” 

However, there are first-hand accounts of Russia’s fraudulent recruitment. According to Al Jazeera, Dancan Chege was a victim of the recruitment. Chege details how he was offered a position as a truck driver, but once he arrived in Russia, he was forced onto the front lines after only three weeks of training. Chege accounts that on the ride to a Russian base in Ukraine, he still believed he was going to drive military trucks. Only after speaking to Ugandans and other Kenyans did he realize he was trafficked into the Russian military. Chege only escaped after feigning a mental breakdown. There are countless other victims named in the Kenyan NIS report.

According to Capital News, Kenyan Labour Cabinet Secretary, Alfred Mutua, has issued a warning on fraudulent recruitment of the Kenyan youth, “Some youth have been taken abroad and ended up fighting in foreign wars. Others got lost or involved in completely wrong things because they were not educated to be careful.” Mutua encourages investigation into international recruiting agencies, as well as utilizing Kenya’s toll-free Employee Authority hotline or the National Employee Authority website. 

According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, 36 African countries are said to have over 1,400 identified nationals fighting for Russia in the Ukraine-Russia War. Other nations included in similar recruitment include China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan. However, Africa is the most targeted, particularly Anglophone Africa. This is partially due to the high youth population. According to Andrew Franklin, a Nairobi-based security analyst, “The Russian military is looking for are [sic] bodies, just bodies to fill holes in the ranks and keep the war going” as well as Anglophone Africa’s education and English ability are useful for Russian commanders. As well, the high youth population in East Africa leaves the job market fragile and many individuals desperate. 

There are a variety of confirmations on the Russian trafficking network, particularly of Africans. According to a Tuko journalist, Harry Ivan Mboto, “recruits travelled via Istanbul in Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates, but tighter airport security at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) forced recruiters to use alternate routes through Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Africa.”  There is a planned network for the transportation of black individuals to send them to die. 

Russia’s false recruitment of African nationals is a blatant violation of the United Nations Human Rights (UNHR) Declaration. This process specifically violates Articles 4 and 5, which state, “No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms…No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” Russia’s violation of human rights by countless countries and continents warrants an international investigation into its recruiting into the Russia-Ukraine War. If this process continues, more Africans are sure to die. While addressing domestic problems is essential to this problem, too, Russia’s outreach and methods necessitate a global call to action.