untitled design

Hundreds of Ethiopians are calling for war on the Russian side against the Ukrainians

Queues form daily early in the morning outside the Russian embassy in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. Seduced by rumors on social media, young and old, many with army diplomas in hand, arrived there hoping to fight for Russia in Ukraine.

Initially there were few volunteers, but within two weeks there were dozens, two residents of the area where the embassy is located told Reuters.

On Tuesday, Reuters reporters saw several hundred men and Ethiopian security guards outside the embassy. The guards registered their names and asked for evidence that they had completed their military service.

There is no evidence that some Ethiopians have been sent to Ukraine, nor is it clear whether they will be sent.

A man who came out of the embassy and addressed the volunteers in Russian through an interpreter said that Russia currently has sufficient forces, but will notify them when needed.

The Russian embassy did not respond to Reuters questions about the man’s identity or whether Russia was sending volunteers from Ethiopia to Ukraine. Later on Tuesday, it issued a statement saying it was not recruiting fighters and that the Ethiopians who appeared outside the embassy were people expressing their “solidarity and support for the Russian Federation”.

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry welcomed the Russian statement, which it said “refutes baseless allegations of enlistment in the Russian armed forces”, but did not respond to Reuters questions. The Russian Foreign Ministry did not respond either.

The Ukrainian embassy in Addis Ababa referred Reuters to the Ethiopian authorities.

Ethiopia has called on all parties to the conflict to show restraint and has not voted in favor of the UN General Assembly resolution condemning the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, which Russia calls a “special military operation” to demilitarize Ukraine.

However, many in Ethiopia have expressed solidarity with Russia, which has had close ties to that country in the Horn of Africa since the Soviet era.

Rumors on social media that $ 2,000 is being paid and job opportunities are being offered in post-war Russia have attracted some of those standing in line. Many parts of Ethiopia are plagued by conflict and annual inflation is around 30%.

“I want to support the Russian government and in return, as soon as I leave, I will have benefits,” Leta Kimbru told Reuters outside the Russian embassy, ​​where he returned on Tuesday to review the progress of his application.

“Life in Ethiopia is becoming difficult,” said a 30-year-old street vendor, who said he resigned from the Ethiopian army in 2018 and now sells clothes and mobile phones. “What I want is to live in Europe.”

Letta said she had heard from friends who had joined the volunteer lists before him that they were giving about $ 2,000. Two others standing in line this week said they had seen Facebook posts saying the embassy was recruiting.

Reuters was not able to find any posts related to the issue from official sources or confirm such offers.

Rumors followed in March that Russian President Vladimir Putin had given the green light to grow more than 16,000 Russian-backed Middle Eastern volunteers to fight in Ukraine, according to Reuters. was unable to confirm whether any of them were sent there.

“The reason I want to go to Russia is not to fight Ukraine, but because I have no benefit for my country,” said Benjamin Waltecadic, a 40-year-old security guard who served in Ethiopia’s 1998-2000 war with Eritrea. .

“I would rather be a citizen of a different country,” Benjamin said.

By late Wednesday, when Benjamin appeared, the number of volunteers outside the Russian embassy had dropped to about 20. A security guard told him the embassy was no longer registering.

Source: Capital

You may also like

Get the latest

Stay Informed: Get the Latest Updates and Insights

 

Most popular