Several African countries are urging Ukraine to recognize their citizens captured while fighting for Russia as victims of human trafficking rather than prisoners of war.

Kenya, Zimbabwe and Botswana have raised concerns that some of their nationals were deceived into travelling to Russia with false promises of civilian employment before being forced into military service, according to Bloomberg.

Kenyan Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi said the recruits had reported being hired under false pretenses, with promises of jobs such as drivers, security guards and cooks.

“We want these men to be recognized as victims of international human trafficking,” Mudavadi said.

Kenya is negotiating the return of five of its citizens, the youngest of whom is 23. Mudavadi said President William Ruto had already spoken with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about the matter.

The Kenyan foreign minister said that around 84 Kenyans have been killed or gone missing in the war in Ukraine, while 34 are in Russia receiving treatment for injuries. A total of 62 Kenyans who participated in the war have been repatriated so far.

Botswana’s Foreign Ministry has also called for the return of one citizen, while Zimbabwe’s government expressed concern over deceptive cross-border recruitment practices.

Zimbabwean officials said some recruits had been sent to active front lines in host countries without receiving prior military training. The statement did not name Russia or Ukraine.

At least 37 African nationals are among foreign prisoners of war held in Ukrainian camps. Ukraine holds at least 213 foreign nationals captured while fighting for Russia.

Ukraine has said Russia recruited more than 28,000 foreign nationals from 135 countries to participate in the war, with more than 5,000 reportedly killed. Captured fighters come from 51 countries.

Russia has not publicly acknowledged the scale of foreign recruitment described by Ukraine and maintains that it has sufficient manpower to continue the war.

The prospects for the captured Africans’ return remain uncertain. Ukraine considers them prisoners of war who could be exchanged for Ukrainians held by Russia, while the African governments are pushing for their cases to be treated as human trafficking.

The issue comes amid a separate diplomatic dispute between Ukraine and South Korea over two North Korean soldiers captured while fighting for Russia in 2025. Seoul recently recalled its ambassador to Ukraine after criticizing Kyiv’s handling of the case and its response to the controversy surrounding the soldiers’ transfer.