African POWs Captured in Ukraine Want to Return to Russia

Hundreds of African soldiers who fought for Russia in Ukraine have been held as prisoners of war. Ukrainian officials present them as evidence of Russian deception, claiming Moscow recruited them with false promises of work and citizenship. The detainees, identified only by call signs such as “Avatar” (from the Democratic Republic of Congo) and “Cairo” (Egypt), say they voluntarily signed contracts with the Russian army and now seek inclusion in a prisoner‑exchange that would send them back to Russia, not to their home countries. Ukraine’s ambassador to South Africa, Olexander Scherba, argues the recruits are being used as expendable manpower, while the foreign minister Andrii Sybiha cites roughly 3,000 citizens from 36 African nations recruited since the invasion. The narrative is contested: the POWs assert they were aware of the job and prefer to return to Russia, whereas Kyiv maintains that many were misled. The issue highlights a broader geopolitical contest for influence across Africa, where Russia maintains a larger diplomatic footprint than Ukraine.