Recruiting for Ukraine War
Cuba arrests 17 people from suspected Russian network
A Russian Navy ship in Havana harbor
© Ramon Espinosa / Picture Alliance
17 people have been arrested in Cuba for allegedly recruiting men for the war in Ukraine. The government in Havana assumes a Russian network.
The public prosecutor’s office accuses the suspects of, among other things, human trafficking and “hostile acts” by a foreign state. In Cuba, the offenses can be punished with life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
Cuba claims to have uncovered Russian recruitment network
The Cuban government had already announced on Monday that it had uncovered a suspected Russian network for illegally recruiting Cubans for “military operations in Ukraine”. The aim of the network is to integrate Cubans living in Russia and Cuba into the armed forces involved in military operations in Ukraine.
Cuban state television showed an interview with the father of two young men recruited by the network, who told how one of his sons left Cuba in July. The second is in custody of the Cuban authorities.
US media reported on the case of two 19-year-olds who were recruited via the online service Facebook with the promise of finding them work as bricklayers in the Russian army in Ukraine. Other witnesses confirmed that they had been recruited directly by the Russian armed forces.
Government denies supporting Russia
Moscow and Havana had recently intensified their relations. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow at the end of last year. In June, Cuban Defense Minister Álvaro López Miera was received by his Russian colleague Sergei Shoigu.
However, the Cuban government denies any support from Moscow in the war in Ukraine.
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