The Central government has received an appeal from two families in the Gurdaspur district of Punjab, asking for the safe return of their children from Russia, where they were detained by the Russian military and made to fight in the conflict with Ukraine while visiting on a tourist visa.
“Two Tourists Detained in Russia Allegedly Forced into Military Service: Families Speak Out”
As the two left for sightseeing after arriving in Russia, they were detained by the local police.
The men’s family further claimed that during the conflict, Russian forces had detained the two men and given them over to military officers who had forced them to enlist in the army to fight against Ukraine.
The family of Ravneet Singh claimed that they got a call from him explaining the series of circumstances that resulted in their detention.
In addition, he said that because of their limited language skills, they were forced to sign an agreement that they did not understand.
23-year-old man who said he is from #Gurdaspur #Punjab #GagandeepSingh called @ndtv @ndtvindia to appeal to @MEAIndia @states_mea @DrSJaishankar to help them return to India; says 7 of them who met in Russia may be deployed any time, without any training, to fight war in #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/re6eFuyY1v
— Uma Sudhir (@umasudhir) March 4, 2024
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“Escalating Conflict: Allegations of Forced Military Service in Russia amid Heightened Tensions with Ukraine”
Others who had arrived in Russia earlier, according to Ravneet Singh, were being forced to fight Ukraine.
In February 2024, the war between Russia and Ukraine began its third year.
Attacks by Ukraine in the Black Sea and on Crimea, which Russia seized and annexed in 2014, have intensified in recent months. A number of attacks have been reported by Kiev, including the mid-February sinking of a sizable landing ship by naval drones.
