Gambiaj.com – According to a report by Bloomberg, the Kremlin has forced thousands of migrants and foreign students to fight alongside Russian troops in its war against Ukraine, bolstering its offensive in the Kharkiv region. European officials have assessed that Russian authorities are increasingly threatening to not extend visas for African students and young workers unless they agree to join the military, echoing tactics first used by the Wagner mercenary group.

Russia is also recruiting inmates from its prisons, with some African workers in Russia being detained and forced to choose between expulsion or combat, as stated by a European official. Some individuals have managed to bribe officials to stay in the country and avoid military service.

A European official cited by Bloomberg noted that Russia’s practice of sending migrants and students to fight under duress dates back to earlier stages of the war. These troops face particularly high casualty rates as they are frequently deployed in risky offensive maneuvers to protect better-trained units.

Reports citing Ukrainian intelligence indicate that Russia has launched a global recruitment campaign to enlist foreign mercenaries from at least 21 countries, including several African nations. Military recruitment campaigns offer signing bonuses and lucrative salaries for those joining as contract soldiers. Recruiters have also targeted migrants and students who initially sought employment in Russia, sometimes luring others with promises of lucrative work before coercing them into training and deployment on the front lines.

Bloomberg notes that Russia’s ability to mobilize a significantly larger number of troops could become a crucial factor in the war as President Vladimir Putin aims to capitalize on a shift in dynamics this year. However, Russian forces are currently making slow progress in northeastern Ukraine and suffering heavy losses, despite the shortage of troops and ammunition on the Ukrainian side.

The British Ministry of Defence, cited by Bloomberg, reported that the Russian military lost more than 1,200 personnel per day in May, marking its highest casualty rate of the war. Since the invasion began, approximately 500,000 Russian personnel have been killed or wounded, according to UK estimates, which Bloomberg could not independently verify.

During a media briefing in Saint Petersburg on Wednesday, Putin suggested that around 10,000 Russian soldiers are killed or wounded each month, with Ukrainian losses being five times higher.

Despite failing to secure a breakthrough on the battlefield, the Kremlin has intensified a bombing campaign against Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. Western officials believe these attacks aim to render the city uninhabitable.

To maintain public support in Russia, Putin has so far avoided large-scale mobilization. The Kremlin claims to have compensated for a significant portion of its losses—numerically, if not in terms of troop quality—through a voluntary recruitment campaign that has attracted tens of thousands of individuals.

Yevgeny Primakov, head of Rossotrudnichestvo, an organization dedicated to promoting Russian knowledge abroad, stated that there are currently between 35,000 and 37,000 African students in Russia. “Each year, we enroll about 6,500 students from Africa to study for free in Russia,” Primakov said on Thursday at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, as reported by Bloomberg.