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As of December 2024, the Russian- Ukrainian war has claimed a huge number of lives, with over 1 million military casualties reported on both sides. The endless fighting forced both sides to desperately seek reinforcements. Russia then turned to countries like Yemen and North Korea in a desperate attempt to fill its ranks. It also recruited about 1,500 Nepalese, making them one of the largest groups of foreign soldiers fighting for Russia. Hebud managed to defect from the Russian army last July. The former police officer spent nine months on the battlefield as a rifleman. Before going to Russia, he earned less than $200 a month. Tempted by promises of high salaries, Hemeridge,
along with a group of 15 people, approached an agent recommended by a friend. The agent promised them that they would be sent to the rear echelons of Russia in support roles, not to the front lines. foreign. The agent claimed that the $6,000 Hemeridge paid covered logistics, including visa fees and flights to Moscow. Nepal Police's Anti- Human Trafficking Department. His team has been investigating the illegal recruitment of Nepalese into the Russian army since February 2024., relatives of 331 Nepalese have submitted information to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling for their return from Russia. However, this
proved to be a difficult task. Birat Anupam is the first Nepali journalist to report on Russia's large-scale recruitment of Nepalese for the war. Historically, Nepalese Gurkha soldiers served in the British Army for over a century. This was enshrined in a tripartite agreement signed by Nepal, India, and Great Britain in 1947. The agreement with Great Britain and India was a diplomatic arrangement between the countries. This was an agreement between rulers, whereas the Nepalese joining the Russian forces was an agreement between a private individual and the state. So these are
completely different things: one is an official channel, the other is an unofficial one. One is legal, the other is not formally illegal, but still illegal. Nepal's current constitution does not explicitly prohibit its citizens from serving in foreign armies. However, in December 2023, the Nepalese government stopped issuing work permits to Russia and called on Russia to stop recruiting Nepalese citizens. The government found itself in a difficult situation. On the one hand, the government does not want its citizens to be in the Russian troops because it is illegal.
Diplomatically, the government of Nepal voted in support of Ukraine at the UN. But our people fought on the side of Russia. So the people are on one side, and the government is on the other. Well, okay. He began serving in the Russian army in August 2023 as a mortarman. Pan claims to be the first Chinese citizen to go to the front to participate in combat. It is estimated that at least several hundred Chinese citizens are fighting on the side of Russia in this war. Foreigners! He was paid a salary of $2,000 per month. Under Chinese law, citizens who participate in foreign conflicts face criminal liability for treason or espionage. During his year of service in the Russian army, Pan amassed 100,000 followers on the Chinese
video hosting platform Douyin. He is one of more than 30 Chinese mercenaries who have made their military lives public. Although the platform repeatedly blocked their accounts, mercenaries like Pan quickly created new ones, attracting a large audience in China. also. You are leaving. Like Pan, 31-year-old Chinese businessman Li Dao left the front lines a few months ago. Listen here. funeral. The volunteer brigade that Li joined is a pro-Russian paramilitary formation in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, known as the " International Brigade "Pyatnashka ". Integrated into the Russian armed forces since September 2022, the group operates under the command of Moscow He is here to help you. In Donbas, Lee's humanitarian work consisted of rescuing and
evacuating the wounded to safety. Despite the potentially controversial nature of his work, Lee insists that his service has not broken any laws. In addition to mercenaries from Nepal and China, another significant source of manpower on the Russian front are people from Central Asian countries. a journalist from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. She revealed the story of 13 citizens of Kyrgyzstan who died fighting for Russia. A fact that many in Kyrgyzstan are not even aware of. Foreigners. The investigation revealed another disturbing truth. A significant portion of other Kyrgyz citizens who joined the Russian army were not volunteers, but prisoners from Russian prisons. To date, she has found 31 such cases. Janabek Akayev, a member of the Jogorku Kenesh,
Kyrgyzstan's unicameral parliament, has been closely monitoring the situation of Kyrgyz migrants in Russia for years. He is trying to draw attention to this growing problem. Oh, you get it for today. Merim travels to Kant, a small town 20 kilometers east of Bishkek, to explore this issue further. Foreign deceased soldier was 34-year-old Ruslan Zabelev, a citizen of Kyrgyzstan who was sentenced to 12 years in prison in Tula, Russia, for illegally purchasing drugs. Ruslan and his wife Lyudmila Miller moved from Kyrgyzstan to Russia back in 2011 in search of a better life. He was drafted into the Wagner Group, a Russian state-funded private military company. Miriam makes a video call to Lyudmila, Rlan's widow,
who still lives in Tula, Russia. Mm. The foreigner tries to find Rlan's relatives in K. Following Ludmila's directions during the conversation, Miriam finds his parents' house, hoping to talk to his siblings to get more information. Thousands of mercenaries are believed to have been recruited by Russia to participate in the conflict with Ukraine, which began in February 2022. It is estimated that at least 1,000 of them have lost their lives in the last 3 years. Nepalese citizen Hemraj Budatoki arrived in Russia in November 2023, after which his Hemraj was promised a monthly salary of $2,000, but payments were delayed, and there was a constant shortage of food in the army camp.
Feeling frustrated and anxious, Hemraj decided to run away. After 8 months, he managed to escape from an army camp in Donetsk region, Ukraine, with the help of an Indian agent. He overcame jungles and overland routes to make his way to Russia. From Moscow, he booked a flight with a connection in Qatar, which eventually brought him back to his hometown of Biratnagar in Nepal. However, Hemraj was never able to get his phone or passport back. He tried to find an agent who would facilitate his recruitment, but to no avail. Unlike Hemraj, Panlin reached Moscow on his own and upon arrival also signed a contract with the hidden clause
concerns President Vladimir Putin's decree on mobilization for war in 2022. which states that contracts with the Ministry of Defense remain valid until mobilization is complete. Nothing prepared these amateur soldiers for the true horrors of war. Video from the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine captured the exact moment of the strike. Foreign language. Who is she? foreign. So, the third After 7 months of service, the Lord wanted to leave. When his contract expired, he submitted his official resignation. And after 3 months of waiting, he was able to return to China at the end of 2024. For some foreign mercenaries who escaped death on the front lines, another imprisonment awaited them soon after joining the war. On March 15, 2024, the Media Center of Ukraine held a
press conference for the first time to highlight their admiration for foreign soldiers. Eight mercenaries from Nepal, Somalia, Cuba, and Sierra Leone shared their stories. we can address this question to Mr. Bikash. When I was in Nepal, I saw some videos on TikTok where there were guys who had already joined Russian units. I contacted them and asked what the process was like and how everything was going. They told me everything was fine and assured me that their job was not to go to the front lines. Our work is support, such as medicine, logistics, or supplies. The film crew was granted access to a secret prisoner-of-war camp in western Ukraine, but not to key information, such as the total number of prisoners or their countries of origin.
Bibek Khatri, a 24-year-old Nepalese mercenary, arrived in Russia in September 2022. family. In August 2023, Bibek decided to join the Russian army. In 2022 and 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued decrees simplifying the naturalization process for foreigners who sign a contract with the Russian army. In January 2024, he signed another decree obliging the authorities to consider such applications within one month instead of three. Instead, Bibek was sent to the front as an infantryman. Two months later, he was captured by Ukrainian forces, and after a series of interrogations, he and three other Nepalese soldiers were transferred to this prison. foreign. That's right. Life in a
prison camp is subject to a strict daily routine. The prisoners perform physical labor and wait their turn to call home, sometimes months apart. The prospect of returning to their countries remains uncertain. The situation for foreigners is very difficult. Even Russia does not want to take its own citizens, because some of them have been in Ukrainian captivity for over two years. We don't need them at all, because we are spending our government's money, taxpayers' money, and we don't need them. We offer the Russians to exchange them for Ukrainian soldiers, but to no avail.
Currently in Ukraine we treat them as prisoners of war, but if our court decides that they are actually mercenaries, they could go to prison for a long time. Bibek's father, 54-year-old Bahadur Katri, is not giving up on trying to bring his son home. The family borrowed 10 lakh Nepalese rupees, equivalent to $7,500, to pay for Bibek's education in Russia and were stunned to learn of his involvement in the war. The family of seven lives in a village near Bardia, a small town 550 kilometers from Kathmandu, not far from the Nepal- India border. Cut off from most of the outside world. They know little about what happened outside their community. The camera crew shows them a video interview with Bbek. This is the first time in almost 2 years that they
have seen Bbek's face. family. Although the prospects remain dim, Bbek's family cherishes hope for his return. 3,000 kilometers away, Cree journalist Miriam Anika is still trying to find locals who were imprisoned in Russia and later mobilized into the army. It has a connection to Naryn, a city east of Bishkek. Like many young Kyrgyz men looking for a better life, Ibek traveled to Moscow in February 2020, where he worked as a taxi driver. But due to an unexpected turn of events, he ended up in prison. He wants to remain anonymous during the interview. In November 2022, 9 months after the start of the Russian- Ukrainian war, Ibek was given a choice in prison.
Initially assigned as an attack aircraft, Ibek was later transferred to an evacuation group in Bakhmut, Ukraine, where he was involved in transporting supplies and assisting the wounded. His contract expired after 6 months. Ibek returned to Kyrgyzstan in July 2023, where he was arrested by the State Committee for National Security. He was sentenced to 5 years in prison for illegal participation in a foreign war. According to the current criminal law of Kyrgyzstan, participation in armed conflicts or hostilities abroad is prohibited, and violators face up to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property. In January 2024, Ibek received a presidential pardon.
Foreign language. An estimated 1,500 Nepalese mercenaries were recruited by the Russian army in the 3 years following the invasion of Ukraine, and over 400 of them never returned home. A social movement is gaining momentum as activists fight to bring their husbands home. Gratu Bandari is organizing protests across the country, trying to force the government to take stronger action. Passport. Kitu meets the family of 24-year-old Ronal Mishra, a Nepalese soldier on the front lines in Ukraine who has been missing for over 6 months. A few weeks ago, Ronal's cousin received a call from the Nepalese embassy in Russia.
Ronal's mother is desperately searching for answers. Just a week ago, she lost her husband, who committed suicide because he could not cope with Ronal's disappearance. Foreign language. I'm just on my pubic bone today. Families of missing soldiers from Koshi province meet with local members of parliament. Former mercenary Hemoraj Budatki, as well as the mother and brother of missing soldier Ronal, are also present at the discussion. China. Since 2023, the Nepalese government has been collecting information from families about local men who have joined the Russian army. But since there are no official statistics or information from Russia, many Nepalese officials also don't
know how to proceed. Foreign language. in March 2025. Li Dafu returned to Russia, hoping to open a business there. Mr. Lin has a cautionary tale for those who want to take up arms. As of March 2025, Nepalese mercenary Bbek is still awaiting extradition from a Ukrainian prison. Ronal's family is still waiting for the results of the DNA test, struggling with unpaid debts Countless families are still searching for answers. When will their children return home? Will the promised compensation be paid? More importantly, how can countries prevent their young men from being drawn into this foreign conflict.
These questions remain unresolved, but efforts to find answers will continue. What are you doing?
