Nigerians blocked from volunteering to support Ukraine’s fight against Russia

The Nigerian government on Monday said it will not tolerate the recruitment of its citizens as mercenaries to support Ukraine fighting Russia.

Nigeria’s foreign affairs ministry spokesman Francisca Omayuli in a statement said Nigeria is in talks with Ukrainian counterparts to forestall such an occurrence.

“As a responsible member of the international community and consistent with our obligations under international law, Nigeria discourages the use of mercenaries anywhere in the world and will not tolerate the recruitment, in Nigeria, of Nigerians as mercenaries to fight in Ukraine or anywhere in the world,” Omayuli said.

“The Federal Government will continue to engage with the Embassy of Ukraine in Nigeria and other relevant authorities to prevent this possibility.”

Nigeria’s opposition to hiring its citizens to fight Russia in Ukraine comes days after media reports suggested that Nigerian volunteers were being drafted for the ongoing war.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky last week called on foreign nationals who are “friends of peace and democracy” to travel to the country to fight against the Russian invasion.

“Anyone who wants to join the defence of Ukraine, Europe and the world can come and fight side by side with the Ukrainians against the Russian war criminals,” Zelensky said.

About 115 Nigerians volunteered to join the Ukrainian forces after Zelensky made the call.

But Omayuli said Nigeria will prevent Nigerians from volunteering as mercenaries in the European country despite media reports that Nigerians were asked to pay $1000 for visas and travel tickets before they could be allowed to volunteer.

The Nigerian official, however, said the Ukraine Embassy refuted the reports that any money was demanded from Nigerian volunteers.

“Furthermore, the Embassy clarified that the Ukrainian government is not admitting foreign volunteer fighters and as such dissociated itself from the claim that it is requesting $1,000 from each Nigerian volunteer for air ticket and visa,” Omayuli said.

By Dennis Erezi

The Guardian

Nigerian volunteer ‘fighters’ besiege Ukraine embassy

At a time Nigerians in Ukraine are struggling to return home, about 115 young men, yesterday, offered to join Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

The men, who besieged the Ukraine Embassy in Abuja, also put down their names in a register provided by the embassy.

Although, The Guardian was barred from taking their photographs, the Second Secretary, Ukraine Embassy, Bohdan Soltys, confirmed the development, adding that no step had yet been taken to that effect.

The volunteers may have been responding to a recent call by Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, urging people around the world to join the fight.

In a statement released last Sunday, the President accused the Russian army of killing civilians and praised Ukrainians for having the courage to defend themselves.

He said that the assault by Russia was not just “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine” but also the beginning of a war against democracy and basic human rights.

Zelensky had called on anyone who wished to join the defense of Ukraine, Europe and the world to come and fight side by side with Ukrainians.

This came as rights group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), faulted the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari for its response to the evacuation of Nigerians in Ukraine.

In a statement by its national coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, said:

“Like other aspects, President Muhammadu Buhari’s Presidency fumbled again. This time, woefully, because it failed to effectively and timeously evacuate Nigerians from Ukraine many weeks before the eventual war started, following the needless invasion of Ukraine by Russia on the illegal orders of President Vladimir Putin.”

In another development, the Federal Government expressed readiness to solidify bilateral ties with the state of Israel, especially in the areas of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) and socio-economic development.

Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Ogbonnaya Onu, stated this when he received the new Ambassador of the State of Israel to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, in his office in Abuja, yesterday.

Onu informed the newly appointed envoy of the Federal Government’s desire to make Nigeria’s economy more diversified and knowledge-based.

He said: “Nigeria is blessed with natural resources and we have some of the most intelligent people in the world. We want to diversify our economy because we believe, with the huge human capital, we can add value to our raw materials and create jobs for our youths.”

The minister hailed the historical diplomatic ties between both nations, adding that the relationship has yielded positive fruits over the years.

Earlier, Freeman said his country is willing to collaborate further with Nigeria on many socio-economic areas, especially challenges that can be solved using STI.

By Bridget Chiedu Onochie and Sodiq Omolaoye and Ernest Nzor, Abuja 

The Guardian

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