By Asiri Fernando/The Morning
Colombo, May 31: Sri Lankan diplomats were expected to meet with senior Russian defense officials in Moscow last evening (30) as a part of preliminary talks focused on gathering information about Sri Lankan mercenaries fighting for the Russians in Ukraine, and to request that those performing combat duties be removed from the front lines as a risk-reduction measure, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya said yesterday.
Addressing a joint press conference with the Russian Ambassador to Colombo Levan Dzhagaryan, Minister Balasuriya said that Russia had agreed to seek a letter of ‘No objection’ from the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence for every male applicant who applies for a visit visa to Russia with effect from yesterday. Balasuriya stressed that the move to vet male candidates was an urgent measure to stop Sri Lankan ex-servicemen travelling to Russia to join the conflict.
“In the future any Sri Lankan male applicant who seeks a visit visa to Russia will face scrutiny, and they will require a letter from our MOD stating they have no objections. This will deter and prevent people from leaving to Russia for such matters” Balasuriya said.
“The situation in Russia is very unfortunate. We have requested information from the Russian defence ministry as to the exact number of Sri Lankans who are engaged in the conflict. Locally, our hotline has so far received 455 complaints regarding Sri Lankan ex-servicemen in Russia” the State Minister said, adding that both the Government and the Russian mission in Colombo were working hard to find a quick resolution for the issue.
“We have requested appointments to meet with Russian foreign and defence ministry officials. Ambassador Dzhagaryan is working hard to get them for us. We hope we will get them confirmed before 5 June so that our delegation can leave for Russia. We need to have these meetings to discuss these matters with our counterparts and find solutions,” Balasuriya said, adding that the Sri Lankan delegation was making preparations to travel to Moscow.
When asked, he stressed that former Sri Lankan ambassador to Russia Udayanga Weeratunga, will not be joining the delegation. He said the delegation will also engage Russian defence authorities regarding rapid repatriation of Sri Lankan combatants who are injured and to find means to repatriate remains of those killed in the conflict.
When asked by The Daily Morning if Sri Lanka had reached out to Ukrainian authorities about Sri Lankan combatants fighting on their side of the front line, Minister Balasuriya said that only one complaint was received about Lankans fighting in Ukraine, and that President Ranil Wickremesinghe was making arrangements to contact his Ukrainian counterpart to discuss the issue today (31) or in the near future.
Ambassador Dzhagaryan expressed his displeasure at Sri Lankans fighting on the Ukrainian side, questioning why the press in Colombo was not highlighting it. Responding to a question from The Daily Morning, Ambassador Dzhagaryan said that he was not aware of the type of agreements which the Sri Lankan mercenaries had signed to seek employment with Russian forces. He said he was awaiting information from Moscow and could not speak to the legality of such agreements.
However, Dzhagaryan stressed that the Russian embassy in Colombo was not aware of such agreements when granting visas for the hundreds of Sri Lankans who have found their way into the ranks of the Russian armed forces. When asked about Russia’s policy on mercenaries fighting for them, Dzhagaryan stated that the Russian Government did not have an issue with ‘volunteers’ joining their ranks, pointing out that Ukraine had thousands of foreigners amongst their ranks. Citing a newspaper report, ambassador Dzhagaryan, challenged the publication to reveal the name of the ‘powerful western nation’ that has expressed concern about Lankan combatants joining the Russian armed forces.
However, a senior government official told The Daily Morning that many Lankan mercenaries have complained that the people smuggling racket that sent them to Russia under false pretext, had got them to sign two agreements, one which had been printed in English, and was signed in Colombo, and the other which some government officials suspect is one from the Russian Ministry of Defence, once they reached Russia, which was in Russian language.
“These fellows (ex-servicepersonnel) didn’t know what they were signing onto, especially with the Russian language forms. They were lied to in Colombo to get them signed up, and then lied to again when they reached Russia. The people who planned this and carried out this racket must be tried for human trafficking ” a senior official close to the matter said.
Meanwhile, the State Minister for Foreign Affairs stated that the hotline established by Sri Lankan Authorities for those with grievances about Sri Lankan combatants in the Russo-Ukraine front had drawn 455 complaints as of last morning. He said that many who left have done so by obtaining loans to pay for their travel to Russia, and are now struggling to pay off the loans. Further some ex-armed forces personnel, who are now in Russia have not been able to validate their pensions from local authorities and are now not receiving them, causing significant hardships at the home front.
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