Peruvian Foreign Minister Carlos Espa expressed concern in Moscow on Monday over the plight of Peruvian citizens who had been enlisted in the Russian army and sent to fight in the war in Ukraine.
During talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, Peru’s foreign minister said he had come to Russia to address “the urgent and often desperate plight of Peruvians” who had gone “to fight on the front lines”, according to Agerpres.
“I came to Russia on behalf of the families of these more than 459 Peruvians,” Carlos Espa said, stressing that their relatives have the right to know whether those who went to the front are “alive, dead or prisoners of war.”
According to the Peruvian minister, the visit aims to make progress on political, humanitarian and consular matters, as well as to obtain information about Peruvian citizens involved in the conflict. Lima is also seeking access to the wounded and faster procedures for repatriating the remains of those who have died.
The issue comes against the backdrop of an October ruling by a Peruvian court ordering a man accused of human trafficking to be held in pretrial detention for 14 months. Investigators allege that he lured victims with promises of nonexistent jobs, only for them to be sent to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.
Amnesty International revealed in a report published in September that Russia had recruited thousands of foreign fighters from countries including Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Sri Lanka and South Africa. Meanwhile, prosecutors in Peru and Bolivia are investigating similar recruitment networks, and Colombian authorities said they had been informed of around 800 citizens in such circumstances.