Peru's foreign minister on Monday confronted his Russian counterpart in Moscow over the recruitment of his country's nationals to fight in Ukraine and demanded help to retrieve the bodies of Peruvians killed in the conflict. Russia has recruited foreign fighters -- especially from South America and Africa -- during its war against Ukraine. Peru's Foreign Minister Carlos Espa said he told his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov that at least 459 Peruvians had been identified as fighting in Ukraine.
He said his visit aimed to make "progress on the political, humanitarian and consular measures which, in accordance to the Vienna Conventions, will enable us to obtain timely information on their situation and whereabouts." Espa said he hoped Moscow will "facilitate access to our wounded compatriots and expedite the procedures for the repatriation of those who have, sadly, passed away". Several countries have demanded that Russia repatriate the bodies of foreign fighters and called on Moscow to stop recruiting their citizens.
"Behind each of these cases are families waiting for news of their loved ones," Espa said. "It is their right to know whether they are alive, have died, or are prisoners of war," he added. Russia has offered high salaries to fight in Ukraine. There have also been reports of Russia sending foreign nationals held in Russian jails to the battlefield in Ukraine. South American mercenaries are known to have been fighting on both sides of the Russia-Ukraine war. Last month, Colombia said more than 250 of its nationals have died in Ukraine and almost 1,000 have disappeared while fighting in Ukraine.
