INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Central Asian nationals residing in Russia are being pressured to fight in Ukraine as Moscow's military incurs heavier-than-expected losses,
Russian and Ukrainian authorities dispute the number of troops killed on both sides
The fog of war makes it difficult to discern not only how many soldiers have died, but also who those soldiers are and where they came
While coming from a reputable outlet, the independently unverified 6,616-page list of military personnel names, registration numbers and
contract service in the Russian army since Feb
Chupik said she received calls from 10 Tajikistan and Uzbekistan citizens who reside in Russia, saying they had received phone calls from
people who claimed to represent immigration law firms and could expedite the process of receiving Russian citizenship if they signed up for
Russian military truck into Ukraine was widely shared via the Telegram messaging app
The man, who appeared to be in his 50s and was dressed in camouflage fatigues, said on camera that he was recruited because of his
There are people from Tajikistan too
listing website called UzMigrant
Bakhrom Ismailov, the director of the company behind UzMigrant, bragged in a Feb
video uploaded in early March by the account @kyrgyznation, a man warns of the possibility that Kyrgyz migrants could be called up to
migrants from economically stagnant Central Asia
million workers from Uzbekistan, 2.4 million from Tajikistan, and 920,000 from Kyrgyzstan were working in Russia in 2021
These migrants face daily abuse, discrimination, and even death threats from law enforcement and deal with wage theft and ruthless
In 2020 alone, 63,389 Tajiks, 43,404 Kazakhs, 23,131 Uzbeks, and 11,865 Kyrgyz acquired citizenship, often through third parties who forge
documents and bribe officials on behalf of the applicants without their knowledge, making the applicants vulnerable to denaturalization
codified the right of foreigners aged 18 to 30 to serve under a contract in the Russian army
enlisted in the service of a foreign army or police service could face up to five years in prison.Again, the way around these legal
complications is for Central Asians to pursue Russian citizenship
of obtaining Russian citizenship for contract soldiers from former Soviet countries.At least three Tajikistan-born contractors in the
good relations with both Moscow and Kyiv, it opposed the war."First, Uzbekistan is seriously concerned by the situation around Ukraine," he
"Second, we are the proponents of finding a peaceful solution to this situation and resolving the conflict through political and diplomatic
But in order to do that, first of all, hostilities and violence must stop immediately."
