Vincent Awiti coerced into Russian military service in Ukraine

2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 4

The 29-year-old Kenyan said a Nairobi recruiter promised him shop work in St Petersburg before he was forced to sign a contract, given four days' training and sent to Kharkiv province.
The case illustrates how Russia is recruiting more aggressively in Africa as it seeks replacements for heavy battlefield losses, estimated by Western officials at about 1,000 soldiers killed or wounded daily.
The report says some Africans reaching the front line never intended to join the war, instead being drawn by promises of paid work and then pressured into military service.

Lured by fake jobs, are thousands of African youths now cannon fodder for Russia's war in Ukraine?

Is Russia's desperate search for soldiers in Africa a new form of neo-colonialism that is now backfiring?

As African governments intervene, can they dismantle Russia's shadow recruitment networks and bring their citizens home safely?