Despite Russia’s denial, EU envoy says Nigerians recruited for Ukraine war

Nigerian fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war

Gautier Mignot, European Union (AU) ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, says Russia has been recruiting Nigerians and other Africans in its war against Ukraine.

Mignot spoke on Tuesday during the Channels Television’s The Morning Brief as the Russia-Ukraine war reaches its fourth year.

Earlier this month, Abubakar Adamu, a Nigerian man, 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.

Earlier this month, Abubakar Adamu, a Nigerian man, 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.

Adamu’s legal representatives said he travelled to Moscow on a tourist visa issued on October 16, 2025, by the Russian embassy in Abuja.

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. Thecable