How Russia war-hiring conduit is endangering Kenyans

By Newsflash Writer

A clandestine network funnelling Kenyans into the Russian military to fight in Ukraine has begun to unravel, forcing the government to publicly confront a crisis it had long tiptoed around.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs finally broke its uneasy silence on October 27, 2025, issuing an unusually blunt warning that young Kenyans were being duped through forged documents and fictitious job offers — only to be trapped inside Russian military camps.

The government admitted that young Kenyans had been enticed into Russia by “corrupt and ruthless agents” using forged paperwork and fake job offers — only for them to end up detained inside Russian military installations. Although the ministry avoided calling it human trafficking, what it described mirrored that offence precisely. Behind the warning was more than a year of slowly intensifying public anxiety.

In March 2024, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Dr Korir Sing’oei had dismissed as baseless a Russian Defence Ministry claim that five Kenyans were fighting for Ukraine, reiterating Nairobi’s strict neutrality. The statement was meant to quell speculation, especially since no evidence then existed of Kenyans in Russian units. Still, rumours thrived — driven by videos showing young Kenyan men in Russian gear, shouting their names or dancing in the woods. Circulated widely on pro-Russian Telegram and X channels, the clips depicted them as enthusiastic volunteers.

That narrative collapsed when former athlete Evans Kibet appeared in a Ukrainian prisoner-of-war video recounting how he had been deceived into joining Russia’s war. His account made denial impossible. Soon after, stories surfaced of a small group of returnees quietly slipping back home — some ill, others penniless, most simply grateful to be alive. Their families flocked to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and the Diaspora Affairs office with passport copies and message screenshots, pleading for help to trace missing sons and husbands. The desperation was blunt: “Months have passed. I don’t know if my son is alive or dead.” Under growing pressure, the matter escalated diplomatically. On November 6, 2025, President William Ruto phoned President Volodymyr Zelensky to request Kibet’s release and raise concerns over Kenyans illegally recruited into Russian formations. Zelensky warned of a fast-expanding pipeline pulling African men into Russia’s ranks — a claim echoed in findings released in Kyiv on November 18, 2025.

Global numbers, local vulnerabilities

At the Crimea Global Conference, General Dmytro Usov of Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War revealed that 18,000 foreign nationals from 128 countries had signed contracts with Russia’s Defence Ministry by October 2025, with another 3,000 whose terms had lapsed being held against their will. Of those still serving, 1,400 were Africans from 36 states.

Since 2022, staggering Russian battlefield losses have pushed Moscow to recruit 30,000 to 40,000 new fighters monthly, according to Western intelligence and independent Russian probes. Security analyst Munira Mustaffa of Verve Research said little of this is surprising. Both sides host foreign fighters, she noted, but their systems differ dramatically. Ukraine’s International Legion — created in 2022 — relies on formal, state-regulated procedures where applicants submit documents, undergo vetting and sign contracts under Ukrainian military authority. “Where Ukraine struggles administratively, Russia employs deliberate manipulation,” Mustaffa said.

She described Moscow’s system as one powered by deception, trafficking networks and exploitation of economically vulnerable groups. In this context, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi’s warning carried weight. It confirmed that many Kenyans had been recruited using forged documents, impersonation of Russian officials and fabricated employment promises. Some ended up scattered across Russian camps; others disappeared into deeper networks.

The ministry blamed “unscrupulous agents” infiltrating recruitment chains. Legal specialists flagged one troubling statement: victims were being “held up for military operations” and coerced into signing what Russia termed “voluntary contracts”.

Legal dilemmas and mounting pressure

The legal questions are straightforward. “The legality under Kenyan and international law depends on how — and for what purpose — someone enters a foreign military,” said international law expert Dr Owiso Owiso. Voluntary enlistment in a regular national army is not forbidden. Recruitment through deceit for active combat raises significant legal concerns. Under Kenyan statutes, deception-based enlistment amounts to human trafficking. The African Union’s 1977 Convention on Mercenarism has yet to tackle the surge of African nationals drawn into the Russia-Ukraine war. Still, legal pathways exist for affected families. Dr Owiso said relatives may file constitutional petitions citing violations of Articles 27 and 30, targeting both state agencies and recruiters. Their case strengthened after a landmark ruling last week: in the Haron Nyakong’o judgment — involving a Kenyan trafficked to Myanmar — the Employment and Labour Relations Court found that deception committed in Kenya establishes jurisdiction even if exploitation occurs abroad. The court held that confiscating Nyakong’o’s passport amounted to forced labour and awarded him over Sh5 million in damages.

International law reinforces these protections. Kenya and Russia are both parties to the Forced Labour Convention, and the prohibition on forced labour is a jus cogens norm — universal and non-derogable.

Dr Owiso added that the International Criminal Court could, in theory, pursue individual recruiters if trafficking contributes to war crimes in Ukraine — a high but not impossible bar. For many recruits, the motivations explain why manipulation succeeded. Interviews with Ukrainian POWs revealed a common thread: they were not ideological fighters but economic victims. They reported signing bonuses of about 1.9 million roubles (roughly Sh3 million) and monthly pay of around 210,000 roubles (about Sh349,000). But recruiters, not fighters, reap the greatest rewards — earning roughly one million roubles (about Sh1.63 million) per recruit, making the trade more lucrative for agents than for the men they funnel to the front.

Kenya’s crisis mirrors a broader trend. South Africa is battling a similar case: 17 men stranded in Ukraine’s Donbas region after signing contracts written in Russian — a language none understood. Relatives say they were pressured into agreement. The scandal widened when Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla resigned as an MP on November 28, 2025 amid allegations she assisted in their recruitment. If Russia releases the South African group, it could set a rare precedent by breaching what former fighters describe as an “unbreakable” contract regime. Once inside a Russian base, they said, complaints are dismissed, commanders feign language barriers, and recruits are separated by nationality to fracture resistance and block escape. Securing their release would give Kenyan families a vital opening — something Moscow may be unwilling to concede.