KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Peruvian authorities say 459 citizens have been recruited to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine.
• More than a dozen Peruvians have reportedly been killed on the battlefield.
• Prosecutors are investigating the recruitment network as a suspected human trafficking operation.
• Many recruits say they were promised civilian jobs before being sent to the front.

Peru says at least 459 of its citizens have been recruited into the Russian military to fight against Ukraine, with more than a dozen already reported dead. Authorities believe many recruits were deceived by criminal networks offering high-paying civilian jobs in Russia before they were transferred to military units and deployed to the front lines.

Recruitment Through False Promises

According to Peruvian investigators, recruiters used social media and online job advertisements to attract economically vulnerable men with promises of employment as security guards, construction workers, or cooks.

Families told investigators that many recruits only discovered they had been enlisted in the Russian military after arriving in Russia, where they allegedly signed military contracts written in Russian before receiving minimal training.

Human Trafficking Investigation

Peru’s Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened a criminal investigation into the recruitment scheme, treating it as a possible case of human trafficking.

Authorities are working to identify those responsible for organizing the network while seeking information from Russian officials about missing Peruvian citizens believed to have been sent to the war.

Heavy Human Cost

Officials say more than a dozen Peruvians are confirmed to have died while fighting in Ukraine, while the fate of many others remains unknown.

Relatives have organized public vigils and demonstrations in Lima, calling on the government to help locate missing family members and secure the return of survivors.

Foreign Recruitment Expands

The Peruvian case reflects a broader Russian effort to recruit foreign nationals to offset battlefield losses.

Investigations by journalists and human rights organizations indicate that similar recruitment campaigns have targeted citizens from several countries in Latin America, Asia, and Africa, often through misleading job offers rather than direct military recruitment.