Nepal tells Russia to stop recruiting its citizens as mercenaries after 6 die
- Kathmandu has urged Moscow to send any Nepali mercenaries still fighting in the Russian army back home
- A Nepali has also been captured in Ukraine, the South Asian nation’s foreign ministry said. It did not specify where, how or when the six were killed
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Kathmandu urged Moscow to stop the use of Nepali mercenaries and send any men serving back home.
Nepal’s foreign ministry said it had received information on the death of the “six Nepali citizens while serving in the Russian army”, and named another citizen “being held in Ukraine after being recruited into the Russian army”. It did not specify where, how or when the six were killed.
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Monday’s statement followed a warning in August urging citizens not to engage in security-related work in war-torn countries.
“The government of Nepal has requested the Russian government to repatriate their bodies to Nepal and compensate the victims’ families,” the ministry said.
“Nepal has requested the Russian government to not recruit Nepali citizens and to send them back as soon as possible if any are recruited.”
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The announcement comes as Russian troops are trying to seize Avdiivka, an industrial town in the eastern Donetsk region of Ukraine that has become one of the most contested points on the front line.
Many Nepalis go abroad to earn money and remittances are crucial for Nepal’s economy, equalling nearly a quarter of its gross domestic product last year, the ninth-highest rate globally, according to the World Bank.
