Nigerian Alleges Forced Recruitment into Russian Army

Abubakar Adamu, a Nigerian man, has appealed to the federal government to urgently move for his repatriation from Russia over claims that he was lured into the Russian army under the guise of employment as a security guard.

According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-terrrorism publication, Adamu’s legal representatives had notified the Nigerian authorities of his ordeal in Russia.

His legal representatives said Adamu travelled to Moscow on a tourist visa issued on October 16, 2025, by the Russian Embassy in Abuja and was reportedly promised employment as a sentry.

When he arrived in Russia, his travel documents were reportedly confiscated and he was forced to sign enlistment papers written entirely in Russian language, without an interpreter.

Adamu later discovered that he had been enlisted into the Russian army.

According to his lawyers, he is currently stranded at a Russian military camp after he refused deployment in combat zones in Ukraine.

On Thursday, the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine said it found bodies of two Nigerians in its Luhansk region, who were allegedly fighting on Russia’s side in the ongoing war.

The Nigerians identified as Hamzat Kazeem Kolawole, 42, and Mbah Stephen Udoka, 38, died in late November 2025 barely a few months after joining the Russian army.

Recently, a CNN investigation disclosed how 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.

But when they landed in Russia, they were allegedly forced into the military and given little training before being deployed in the frontline.

On Tuesday, Andrey Podyelyshev, the Russian ambassador to Nigeria, dismissed the reports and distanced the Kremlin from the alleged recruitment programmes.