COLOMBO:  , At least 16 Sri Lankan mercenaries have been killed fighting in the war between Russia and Ukraine, the island’s deputy defence minister said on Wednesday ( May 15 ).
Since the invasion began more than two years ago, tens of thousands of Russian troops have been killed in Ukraine, and Moscow has been a worldwide searcher for more soldiers.
Since last year, soldiers from Sri Lanka’s local neighbors, India and Nepal, have signed up to fight, with many confirmed fatalities reported from citizens of both nations.
Sri Lanka opened an investigation last year into how its citizens were recruited during the conflict, according to deputy defense minister Pramitha Tennakoon, who has since identified the involvement of 288 island-based withdrew soldiers.
” We have confirmed data about 16 who have been killed”, he told reporters in Colombo.
Tennakoon did not specify which side of the conflict the men were engaged in combat.
However, Gamini Waleboda, a member of the ruling party, told the legislature on Monday that the majority of candidates had been hired to join the Soviet troops.
According to Waleboda, those who enlisted had been defrauded of promises of high earnings and false promises that they would be given non-combat functions.
Tennakoon urged military commanders to avoid falling for the recruitment drive and claimed that the selection of Sri Lankans was being treated as a human smuggling operation.
The Sri Lankan government was also in discussions with the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia to find and bring up Sri Lankans properly.
” This is a delicate issue”, Tennakoon said. ” We are companions with Russia, we are friends with Ukraine. Both are crucial to us, so we are coordinating with the foreign ministers to get our citizens again properly.