Were Indian men tricked into fighting on the frontline for Russia?

What in the World

• Episode: Were Indian men tricked into fighting on the frontline for Russia?
• Website: What in the World
• Feed URL: https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/w13xtvrv.rss
• Duration: 00:13:22
• Published: 2024-02-29 15:30

Shaikh Mohammad Sarfaraz, a young Indian man from Kolkata, thought he’d landed a great job in another country; the pay was good and he believed he’d get a passport after just a few months’ work. He was told he was going to be a helper for the Russian military, working as a security guard or in the kitchens. But once he got there he found out he wasn’t going to be a helper, he was going to be a soldier - and he was being sent to fight in Ukraine.

Neyaz Farooquee, a reporter from the BBC’s Delhi bureau, has spoken to a number of Indian men who say they were also tricked. He describes their experiences. Plus Veronika Malinboym from BBC Monitoring in Georgia tells us about the other foreign nationals fighting in the Russia Ukraine war - on both sides of the conflict.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Alex Rhodes and Baldeep Chahal Editor: Julia Ross-Roy