Madagascar’s population becomes a source of recruits after Russia takes control

Today the biggest news comes from Africa. Russia is widening military recruitment across Africa, including hundreds of men from Madagascar for the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine started. A Ukrainian intelligence source said that Moscow recruited 699 men from Burundi and 530 from Zimbabwe in the first nine months of 2026. To further increase their manpower, recruitment also expanded in Sierra Leone and other African states.

Russia increasingly needs foreign recruits because it cannot meet the army's domestic demands. Notably, Russia has lost approximately 330,000 soldiers this year, while recruitment has been falling behind, meaning that the size of the Russian army has been decreasing by 6,000 soldiers monthly. As a result, Russia is forced to try other options to fill its ranks. Russia has so far avoided another large-scale mobilization since 2022, fearing a backlash from its citizens, which is why it resorted to foreign recruits.

Russia already maintains political, economic, and military ties on the continent, including through the Afrika Korps, the state-run Russian paramilitary-running Russian operations in Africa, which facilitates networks and access for the Russian state for recruitment. Russia increasingly targets poorer countries with limited press freedom and weak judicial systems.

This allows Russia to exploit the weak governance of these African countries, which cannot effectively protect their citizens from covert recruitment. High youth unemployment, poverty, and limited job opportunities in many African nations create a large pool of vulnerable young men who can be drawn in with financial incentives or deception. Common lures include well-paid work as drivers, security guards, construction workers, scholarships, and study at Russian universities, or tourist visas leading to jobs.

Salaries advertised are far above local averages, plus large signing bonuses and a path to Russian citizenship. Russia recruits through social media, online ads, travel agents, influencers, and intermediaries operating in African countries. Some target Africans already in Russia, for example, students or migrants with threats of deportation or offers of legal status. Upon arrival, recruits often face pressure or forced to sign Russian-language military contracts they may not understand, with passports confiscated and no chance to leave. From African countries, at least 2,000 people signed contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Top sources include Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Sudan. All in all, Russia has recruited nearly 46,000 foreign nationals from 151 countries. Central Asia dominates because around 20,000, which equals 44% of foreign recruits, come from here to join the Russian army. So far, more than 8,000 men from Uzbekistan and 5,000 from Tajikistan have fought in Ukraine. In 2023, Russia lured up to 15,000 men from Nepal into Russia, but recruitment dropped sharply after the Nepali government applied diplomatic pressure and banned work permits. Similar cases happened in Sri Lanka and India on a smaller scale after India protested the cases of deception by Russian authorities.

Ukrainian intelligence also verified that more than 1,000 men from Cuba joined the Russian army. Cubans were among the larger non-post-Soviet groups, while recruitment faced Cuban arrests of intermediaries and later Ukrainian diplomatic efforts to curb it. Overall, Russia's growing reliance on foreign fighters reveals a deeper weakness as the Kremlin is struggling to sustain a war that continues to consume enormous numbers of soldiers. Instead of confronting the political risks of another mobilization at home, Moscow is shifting the human cost onto vulnerable populations abroad.

As recruitment scandals spread, diplomatic pressure grows, and governments intervene, Russia may find that exploiting economic desperation can provide temporary manpower, but not a sustainable solution to its long-term military crisis. Get access to our complete library of members-only reports and strategic updates for just $4.99. That includes every exclusive video already published, plus new reports released throughout the week. For less than the price of a coffee, you can unlock the full channel and directly support our work.

Click join below and start watching our exclusive coverage already today.