India has strongly taken up the matter with the Russian Ambassador in New Delhi and with the Russian authorities in Moscow, says MEA
Two Indian nationals who had been recruited by the Russian Army have been killed in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said late on Tuesday (June 11, 2024).
 
Reacting strongly to the development, India has called for a “verified stop” to the recruitment of Indian nationals by the Russian Army. It has also suggested that such acts could have an impact on bilateral relations.
 
“We regret to state that two Indian nationals who had been recruited by the Russian Army have recently been killed in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine,” the MEA said in a statement.
 
The MEA pointed out that it had, along with the Indian Embassy in Moscow, “strongly taken up the matter” with the Russian Ambassador in New Delhi and with Russian authorities in Moscow respectively, for early release and return of all Indian nationals who are with the Russian Army.
 
“India has also demanded that there be a verified stop to any further recruitment of our nationals by the Russian Army. Such activities would not be in consonance with our partnership,” the MEA stated.
 
Offering its deepest condolences to the families of the deceased, the MEA said, “Our Embassy in Moscow has pressed the Russian authorities, including the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, for early repatriation of the mortal remains”.
 
The latest incident has taken the number of Indian nationals killed while fighting alongside the Russian Army against Ukraine to four. Two Indian nationals had died in March this year. According to several news reports, these Indian nationals were working as ‘helpers’ in the Russian Army.
 
Addressing the media in New Delhi on March 15, 2024, MEA Official Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said there were about 20-odd people in Russia who had approached the Indian authorities for help. “We are pressing very hard with the Russian authorities for early discharge of our people who are stuck there,” he said. Replying to a query on the matter, Jaiswal said several of them had been discharged and some of them had also come back to India.