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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Conflict & Security

Indonesia Investigates Reports That Eight Citizens Joined Russian Forces in Ukraine War

From Republika · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement Under investigation
  • Indonesia is verifying Ukrainian intelligence claims that eight Indonesian citizens joined Russia’s armed forces on the front line against Ukraine.
  • The Foreign Ministry said it must confirm their identities, citizenship status, recruitment process and involvement before applying legal consequences.
  • Indonesia is also examining possible deception, exploitation or recruitment through misleading job offers and warned citizens against work opportunities that could involve foreign military service.

Indonesia is investigating Ukrainian claims that eight of its citizens joined Russia’s armed forces to fight in the war against Ukraine.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang said officials were checking the information through Indonesian representatives and coordinating with relevant ministries and agencies. The claims were first released by Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, which published information about Indonesians who had obtained Russian visas.

The Indonesian government is carefully reviewing the information conveyed by the Ukrainian authorities regarding the alleged involvement of several Indonesian citizens in the armed forces of the Russian Federation.

— Yvonne MewengkangThe Foreign Ministry spokesperson described Indonesia’s response to the Ukrainian claims.

Mewengkang said the government still needed to verify the individuals’ identities, citizenship status, recruitment process and form of involvement. She said Indonesian law sets out consequences for citizens who join the military service of another country, including the automatic loss of citizenship if the involvement is confirmed.

Information regarding the identities, citizenship status, recruitment process and form of involvement of the individuals named still requires further verification.

— Yvonne MewengkangShe said key details remained unconfirmed.

The ministry is also examining whether any Indonesians may have been deceived or exploited, including through job offers that concealed their actual purpose. If citizens were victims of such recruitment, Indonesia would take protective measures under applicable law.

The government urged Indonesians to exercise caution over work offers in conflict zones or opportunities that could involve military activities for a foreign state. Mewengkang said any confirmed participation would be an individual act and would not represent Indonesian government policy. She also said Indonesia had no involvement in its citizens joining a foreign military and reaffirmed support for a peaceful resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, respect for the UN Charter and international law.

Indonesia urges its citizens to exercise caution regarding job offers in conflict zones or offers that could potentially involve them in the military activities of a foreign state.

— Yvonne MewengkangThe ministry warned Indonesians about recruitment risks.
About this summary

Originally published by Republika in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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