Ghana says Russia has agreed to stop recruiting Ghanaian nationals to fight in the war in Ukraine, according to a statement issued in Accra.
The assurance was reportedly given by Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit in Moscow last week, after Ghana's President John Mahama raised the issue. Putin is reported to have said he would ban Ghanaians from taking part, whether through irregular recruitment or voluntary enlistment.
The numbers
Ghana said last month that its citizens were being tricked into joining Russia's war effort and urged Moscow to do more. As of mid-August, reports said more than 270 Ghanaians had fought for Russia, at least 62 had been killed and 15 were missing.
A wider African problem
Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon and The Gambia have also complained that their citizens were lured to the front with false promises of work or study, according to reports. Ukrainian officials said last week that a Botswana citizen recruited through social media was killed in Ukraine's Luhansk region.
