Photo: Ambassador Russian Federation in Sri Lanka Levan Jagaryan and Tharaka Balasuriya, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka and Russia begin negotiations on resolving the problem of Sri Lankans fighting in Ukraine on the side of Russia, after how at least 16 people went missing.
Sri Lanka's junior foreign minister Tharaka Balasuriya said the country's citizens, mostly retired soldiers, were tricked into traveling to Russia with promises of good salaries and benefits. including Russian citizenship, reports Associated Press agency.
"The situation in Russia is very unfortunate", – Balasuriya told reporters, adding that he is working with the Ministry of Defense to find out the number of fighting compatriots.
"We have received 455 complaints, but we believe the number could be much higher," – he added.
"They were deceived by unscrupulous agents – some of them were arrested. People who left for Russia were promised certain salaries and privileges, including citizenship,”– said Balasuriya.
Russian Ambassador to Sri Lanka Levan Dzhagaryan said that negotiations in Moscow will be the first step to resolve this issue.
Prepared by: Sergey Daga