Russia in talks with Cuba about mercenaries, affirms the Ambassador in Havana

The Russian ambassador to Cuba, Víctor Koronelli, stated that his country and Havana are working together to clarify the case of the island's mercenaries who are providing service to the Russian army in Ukraine.

When questioned by the correspondent ofCNN In Havana during the delivery of a donation of 672 tons of oil to the island, the diplomat said that "the competent bodies are working and are in contact with both the Russian side and the Cuban side" to analyze the arrival of Cubans to Moscow to participate in the war.

He acknowledged that the embassy is aware of the presence in Russia of Cubans who have traveled with the purpose of receiving military training, but said that he does not know the exact numbers.

"I don't know how many Cubans are there, I don't have the information," Koronelli said.

Cuban officials have defended their longtime ally Russia's war in Ukraine, but in September they said they had arrested 17 Cubans who had violated local laws by trying to go fight for Russia as paid mercenaries and for alleged human trafficking.

Some relatives of Cubans in Russia explained that their relatives were tricked by people through networks into joining the Russian war effort with promises of money, Russian citizenship, and that they would not be sent to the front.

The presence of Cubans on the Russian front came to light after the denunciation oftwo families from the island who claimed that their children had been tricked and recruited to participate in the war against Ukraine.

Following this complaint, the Cuban Government reported the dismantling of an alleged Cuban recruitment network, and then a team of Ukrainian hackers obtained information from an email from a Russian military officer about nearly 200 passports of Cubans who are supposedly serving as hired mercenaries. for Russia.

Likewise, the independent press revealed the name of a key figure in this recruitment plot, the representative of the Ulyanovsk Regional Office of the Russian Society of Friendship with Cuba and administrator of the Facebook group created by himself and named 'Russia for Cubans',Vladimir Shkunov.

Under pressure from these revelations, the Cuban Foreign Ministry issued a statement rejecting any form of participation in the invasion of Ukraine and emphasized that mercenarism isa crime in the country.

This occurs at a complex moment for the regime where it has had to approach Moscow so that its old ally can help it alleviate the serious crisis on the island.

In recent months political contacts have increased, andboth nations have explored avenues to increase economic exchanges.