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The United Kingdom has announced a slew of sanctions targeted at Russian networks facilitating the recruitment of Africans and Middle Easterners for the war in Ukraine.
In a statement on Tuesday, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said three individuals were on the sanctions list.
The FCDO named one Polina Alexandrovna Azarnykh, who it said was backed by the Russian state.
According to the statement, Azarnykh has been facilitating the travel of individuals from countries including Egypt, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Morocco, Syria and Yemen through Russia to Ukraine, where they are deployed with minimal training and under dire conditions to the frontline to sustain Russia’s illegal war of aggression.
Andrey Podyelyshev, Russian ambassador to Nigeria, has distanced the Kremlin from the alleged recruitment of Nigerians as soldiers to fight in Ukraine.
Podyelyshev’s denial came after a February investigation uncovered that Africans from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda were reportedly lured to Russia under the guise of civilian job offers such as drivers or security guards.
After the investigation, Ukraine said it discovered the bodies of two Nigerians in its Luhansk region who were allegedly fighting on Russia’s side in the protracted war.
More Nigerians in Russia also began to publicly appeal to the federal government seeking repatriation over claims of being lured into the Russian army.
“The practice of exploiting vulnerable people to prop up Russia’s failing and illegal war in Ukraine is barbaric,” the FCDO statement quoted Stephen Doughty, UK sanctions minister, as saying.
“These sanctions expose and disrupt the operations of those trafficking migrants as cannon fodder and feeding Putin’s drone factories with illicit components to target innocent civilians and vital infrastructure.”
SANCTIONS ALSO TARGET DRONES PRODUCTION
The UK also sanctioned network recruiting foreign migrants and putting them to work in weapons factories “through schemes like Russia’s Alabuga Start programme for drone production at a UK-sanctioned entity”.
“Russia continues to terrorise Ukraine by indiscriminately using drones, killing, and injuring innocent civilians and damaging critical infrastructure,” the statement reads.
“Russia fired the equivalent of over 200 drones per day into Ukraine in March 2026, the highest ever monthly total. Russia is likely to exceed this grim record for a second consecutive month in April.
“These attacks rely on domestic manufacturers and third country suppliers providing key components and technical support. This new action is designed to disrupt these supply chains and hold those responsible to account by targeting the businessmen and companies fuelling Russia’s drone manufacturing capabilities.”
Some of the sanctioned targets were based in third countries, including Thailand and China. According to the FCDO, they were responsible for supplying drone components and other critical military goods to Russia.
“Among those sanctioned is Pavel Nikitin, whose company develops Russia’s VT‑40 drone — a cheap, mass‑produced attack drone which has been used extensively by Russia in its attacks on Ukraine,” the statement said.
In total, 35 individuals and entities were sanctioned.
The UK said it would remain unwavering in its support for Ukraine and defend European security by disrupting Russia’s hybrid threats.
