Sri Lanka’s minister of foreign affairs, Tharaka Balasuriya, raised the subject of compensation during a visit to Moscow of a high-level diplomatic delegation on June 26 and 27. Colombo also pressed Russian authorities to allow Sri Lankans still on the frontline to return home. An additional demand concerned the hunt for Sri Lankan soldiers missing in action.
“The interactions centered on the 17 Sri Lankans killed in action, payment of compensation for the deceased and the wounded, the plight of the uncontactable Lankans, possibility of voluntary returns, early termination of contracts and regularization of remuneration,” a statement from the Sri Lankan embassy in Moscow said.
Neither the Moscow nor the Kyiv authorities have made public the number of foreign soldiers serving in their forces, or how many have been killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. However, Russia is believed to have recruited thousands of foreign troops, mostly from South Asia. Foreign Minister Balasuriya is also pushing the Ukrainian government to release Sri Lankan prisoners.
In May, the Sri Lankan parliament opened investigations into at least 2,000 experienced former soldiers who may have joined up on both sides of the conflict, either as part of regular or mercenary forces, AFP reported. The inquiry identified 455 Sri Lankan veterans who had signed up for Russia. Colombo also claims at least a dozen of its citizens are being held as prisoners of war in Ukraine.
AFP reported that Russia actively recruited Sri Lankans after the South Asian country’s economy collapsed in 2022, the year Russia invaded Ukraine. The French news service wrote that faced with financial strife, many Sri Lankans sought work overseas, including battle-hardened military veterans who now want to return home. The situation has led to protests outside the Russian embassy in the Sri Lankan capital with wives and other family members saying their menfolk were “duped.”
AFP reported that advertisements appearing in WhatsApp groups for retired soldiers promised pay of up to $2,100 a month, thirteen times the average wage in Sri Lanka. Others were also allegedly offered land where they and their families could settle and start a new life.
On June 11, the Colombo foreign ministry said Moscow had agreed to stop recruiting Sri Lankans to its armed forces and to accept the diplomatic delegation led by Balasuriya.
Among the delegation’s proposals was a working party to discuss the issue of the country’s fighters.
“Sri Lanka proposed to establish a joint working committee comprising of officials from the two sides to meet regularly to address issues and concerns of the Sri Lankans who have been deployed,” the embassy in Moscow said.
