NEPAL RUSSIA UKRAINE WAR

‘Desperate to return’: the Nepali mercenaries lured to fight for Russia in Ukraine

epa11174853 (L-R), Binita Gurung, Yaga Kumari Shrestha, Tina Ghimire, and Sita Maya Rai hold mobile phones showing images of their husbands in Russian Army uniforms (images blurred upon the wives' request) in Kathmandu, Nepal, 09 February 2024. (Issued 23 February 2024) Binita, Yaga, Tina, and Sita's husbands joined the Russian Army to participate in the Russia-Ukraine war four months prior but now wish to return safely. However, the Russian army authorities are not allowing them to return, before the end of the one-year contract they signed. Dozens of wives of Nepalese fighting with the Russian army, gathered ina protest in Kathmandu in February 2024, to demand the safe return of their husbands, proper compensation, and a better treatment for wounded Nepalese soldiers." According to Krishna Bashyal, Legal Head of the Consular Department at the Nepal Foreign Ministry on 23 January 2024, over 200 Nepalis were recruited by the Russian army for its Ukraine campaign, lured by monthly wages of around 150,000 roubles (approximately 1,600 USD) – around eight times the average salary in Nepal – and promises of fast-tracked Russian citizenship. EPA/NARENDRA SHRESTHA ATTENTION: For the full FOCUS ESSAY text please go to: https://epaimages.com/misc.pp?code=section-focus

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