Ukrainian Project Publishes List of Kazakh Citizens Killed Fighting for Russia

The Ukrainian project “I Want to Live” has published a list of fallen citizens of Kazakhstan who fought on the side of the Russian Armed Forces, Orda.kz reports.

According to the project, at least 270 Kazakh citizens who joined Russia’s forces in the war against Ukraine have been killed. Those behind the project note that the real number of dead and missing may be several times higher.

The youngest among the dead was 19-year-old Andrei Bogomolov, born in 2005. The oldest was 64-year-old Alexander Yalfimov from the 254th Motorized Rifle Regiment. The list includes both mercenaries and combat veterans recruited either in Russia or in Kazakhstan.

The recruitment of Kazakhstanis continues: people are sought in prisons, among migrant workers, and through fake employment agencies offering ‘high-paying jobs in Russia.’ Online advertising with geotargeting to citizens of CIS countries is also actively used,
 the project authors stated.

According to the initiative, Russia is gradually shifting recruitment efforts away from distant foreign mercenaries toward neighboring countries with minimal language barriers.

Under Kazakhstani law, participation in foreign armed conflicts is punishable by imprisonment. Mercenarism carries penalties of up to life imprisonment and loss of citizenship.

Earlier, an Orda.kz journalist, posing as a job seeker, responded to an online recruitment ad for “volunteers” to join the Russian army. Recruiters promised an official contract, payments of up to 3.5 million rubles, and fast-track Russian citizenship.

In another case, a 24-year-old Kazakhstan-born citizen reportedly obtained Russian citizenship after being seriously wounded while fighting in Ukraine. 

Kazakhstan’s courts have already begun issuing sentences for such participation. 

Original Author: Ruslan Loginov