The Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Nigeria, Andrey Podyelyshev, has debunked reports in some news media that Nigerians and other Africans were being recruited by the Russian government to fight for Russia in the ongoing military confrontation with Ukraine.
The Russian envoy told a news conference in Abuja on Tuesday that the Vladimir Putin administration in Moscow does not have any programme to recruit Nigerians into the Russian military, adding that the reports were a product propaganda fabricated by some Western media to tarnish the image of Russia.
He also noted that the suspected agencies doing the recruitment do not have any connection with the Russian government even as he challenged anyone with credible information on the issue to come up and the Russian government will investigate the matter.
Ambassador Podyelyshev said, “If some illegal people are trying to recruit Nigerians to fight in Ukraine, this is not connected with the Russian state. If anybody has information, we are ready to send it to Russian law enforcement authorities for investigation.”
He emphasised the agreements between Russia and Nigeria on military‑technical cooperation, including discussions on the training of Nigerian military personnel and Russian military equipment to Nigeria.
He said, “some projects have already started, some are under consideration. We are ready to develop cooperation as much as the Nigerian side wishes.”
The ambassador noted that Nigeria is one the biggest economies in Africa and a vital partner for Russia in the continent. He said: “cooperation with Nigeria largely shapes our prospects in West Africa. Nigeria is a potential anchor of regional stability and development.”
He said further that the forthcoming intergovernmental agencies commission meeting that will be held in Moscow this year, is another ground for both countries to strengthen their bilateral relations in diverse sectors, especially economic and defense cooperation, trade and investment, nuclear technology and digital economy, education among others.
The envoy noted that Russia’s chief interest in the global community is to promote a multipolar world order, respect for sovereignty and civilisational diversity, and opposition to unilateral domination, stressing that Russia also supports African solutions to African problems and rejects external coercion in other states’ internal affairs.
