Ukraine has been criticized by several African nations for hiring fighters from the continent in order to oppose Russia.
Only two weeks into the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Kyiv is already attracting foreign fighters from as far away as Kenya. If Ukraine decides to pay me a very good amount of money, which I know I cannot earn here, I'll definitely go there and fight," said Kimanzi Nashon, a student in Kenya's capital, Nairobi. Whenever we go there, and the war ends before anything happens, I'll come back to Kenya a millionaire," said Nashon.
Nashon isn't the only one who harbors thoughts of being hired as a fighter in Ukraine. Beatrice Kaluki, who is unemployed, told DW that she would be there on her heels if an opportunity arose to fight as a mercenary in Ukraine. My family will be compensated even after my death on the front lines in Ukraine, rather than die from depression in Kenya due to the insane unemployment rate!"
A 27-year-old woman told me she believes other young people would also flee there [to Ukraine] if given the chance because "they would rather die there fighting than in this country from poverty."
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for like-minded people to come to Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion. Security risk management consultancy Signal Risk director Ryan Cummings says. The socioeconomic challenges in Africa may help Zelenskyy attract African fighters to Ukraine. DW reports that African nationals might see economic benefit from participating in the conflict. A reward for participating in the conflict on behalf of Ukrainian forces may come in the form of a Ukrainian citizenship or financial compensation.
Africa, however, has expressed strong opposition to Ukraine's call for African fighters to join the "international legion" against the Russian invasion. Nigeria warned its citizens on March 7 not to recruit mercenaries to fight alongside Ukrainian forces against Russian troops.
Foreign affairs minister Francisca Omayuli says Nigeria won't allow its nationals to serve as mercenaries. Omayuli also said that local Nigerian media reports about the Ukrainian Embassy in Nigeria demanding money from Nigerian volunteers have been refuted. In a statement, the Embassy said it is not requesting $1,000 [€917] from each Nigerian volunteer for an air ticket and visa. According to the Nigerian daily The Guardian, over 100 young men registered last week at the Ukrainian embassy in Abuja that they were interested in fighting for the country.
The Senegalese government has also expressed its displeasure with the Ukrainian government, saying that at least 36 people are prepared to confront Russian forces. DW tried to contact some of the volunteers but was unable to do so. Senegal's Foreign Affairs Ministry expressed surprise at the Ukrainian Embassy in Dakar's posting on its Facebook page asking foreign citizens to support Ukraine's military efforts. Senegal's government announced that it was criticizing the initiative and warning its citizens that recruiting volunteers, mercenaries, and foreign fighters on Senegalese soil was illegal.
The Facebook post has since been deleted by the Senegalese embassy. It raises questions about the motivations and profiles of some young Africans to fight in Ukraine. Researchers on peace, security, and governance at the U.S.-based Peace Operations Training Institute lamented that young people wanting to get involved in Ukraine have not considered the implications of religion or politics fully. "They only care about answering the call, and may not understand what's going on," Gaye said.
Senegal, which has extensive political and military ties with Russia, abstained from voting on the March 2 resolution condemning Russia's aggression. Algeria, another client of Russian military hardware, also urged Ukraine not to send fighters from its country to Ukraine. Russia has also remained silent over Ukraine's invasion. The prospect of economic gain has lured young Africans to become mercenaries for the past 20 or 30 years, Gaye said, adding that the opportunity to earn money easily attracts them. "Another element that I believe is important to any cause today is social media. A cause needs to go global, so we're going there."
There has been a battle in the social media between supporters of Ukraine and Russia. African countries should consider the implications of allowing their citizens to travel to Ukraine as hired guns, says security and risk analyst Ryan Cummings. Any country that actively supports Ukraine in this war, or 'a special military operation to demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine,' as Russia calls it, will be considered at war with Russia, he said. As a retaliatory measure, the Kremlin could cut diplomatic ties with African countries that support Ukraine.
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