Pablo de Greiff, UN expert: ‘Russia is responsible for human trafficking’

Russia has violated international law by recruiting foreign nationals through deception and coercion. That is the conclusion reached by the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine in a report published Monday, which documents dozens of cases of people who were lured with promises of civilian jobs in Russia and ended up, against their will, fighting for the Russian Army.

Pablo de Greiff, 63, is one of the three members of the commission. “Russia is responsible for human trafficking. It meets all three criteria: there is recruitment by deception, a moment of covert transfer and an element of exploitation on arrival,” he says in a video call from New York. De Greiff, an international human rights expert, cites the case of a foreign national examined by the commission who, after arriving in Russia, refused to sign a contract to join the military. “He was taken to a place where four prisoners were held. They were executed in front of him. He had no other option.”

According to Ukrainian authorities, more than 27,000 foreigners are fighting on Russia’s side. They come from all over the world. The commission found evidence of deceptive recruitment involving people from 29 countries, including Colombia, Bolivia, El Salvador, Peru, India, the Philippines, Ghana, Turkey and Morocco, among others. Recruitment typically takes place through social media.

“Much of the advertising for supposed job opportunities is on social networks. We know of cases of several Bolivians who were promised work at a museum. The agencies described the trip as a cultural tour: how ironic,” says De Greiff.

The commission was able to identify several companies that present themselves as employment agencies but in fact operate as recruitment offices for Russia. Several of them are active in Colombia, one of the Latin American countries from which the largest numbers of men are recruited for conflicts abroad. Hundreds of Colombians have also been deceived into fighting in Sudan and in other countries across Africa and the Middle East.

The report states that the vast majority of recruits had no military experience and were vulnerable individuals in precarious economic situations. Almost none spoke Russian and therefore did not understand the terms of the contracts they signed. “Signature was obtained in an environment marked by significant coercion,” states the report.

Many of these men were assigned to fight at the front. Many died or disappeared there. A BBC investigation published in July revealed that more than 3,500 foreigners fighting for Russia died during the more than four years of war. By nationality, the list of the dead is led by North Korea, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Georgia and Azerbaijan.

For De Greiff, it is important to point out that Russia’s recruitment practices are completely different from those employed by Ukraine, whose military includes an international legion. “In Ukraine’s case, this is the recruitment of mercenaries: they are people who voluntarily fight in a conflict in exchange for financial benefits,” he says. The commission found no evidence that Kyiv recruited foreign citizens through deception.

Responsibility for the trafficking of these thousands of men does not rest solely with the Russian Federation, the U.N. independent investigator warns. “Countries of origin also have an obligation to prevent these cases from continuing to occur,” he says.

The expert compares the situation to human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. “In those cases there is substantial public awareness-raising, making clear the risks and the mechanisms that lead to the crime. That is an essential measure,” he says. The commission does not make specific recommendations regarding the social media platforms where the fraudulent advertisements are shared.

Several countries have already urged their citizens not to fall into these traps. Colombia is one such case. In September, Colombia’s Foreign Ministry called on both Ukraine and Russia to release all Colombians fighting in their ranks. The government said at the time that it was aware of allegations involving individuals and companies that had transported men to the war front under false pretenses.

Colombia is one of the most significant examples in the region. According to a U.N. panel of experts, more than 10,000 Colombians have been recruited abroad over the past decade. Earlier this year, the country passed legislation ratifying an international convention against mercenarism.

Earlier this year, the Russian embassy in Colombia denied it had any “connection with recruiters” who deceive people into traveling to Russia. The remark was made after an investigative report documented the Kremlin’s strategy to recruit dozens of Colombians into its army. De Greiff argues that “the trafficking mechanism” involves various institutions, including Russia’s Ministry of Defense, the military itself, and even “embassies and consulates of several countries.”

Attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine

The report also details the impact that large‑scale attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure have had on the civilian population. “The scale of civilian suffering has been incremental over the years, due to the augmenting intensity of the attacks during the cold season, their widening geographic scope, and their repeated character,” it states. For the commission, these repeated attacks amount to crimes against humanity.

“Russia argues that energy structures are military targets, but in reality they are civilian in nature and have a severe impact on the population, especially in a modern society in which we are so dependent on connectivity. And in Ukraine’s case, on heating during the winter,” the investigator says.

De Greiff declines to comment on peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine or on the role of the United States in them. “After nearly five years of following the war, we all have opinions, but they are personal. Our mandate is to investigate and document human rights violations,” he stresses.

The report concludes by recommending an end to attacks on vital civilian infrastructure and the suspension of the deceptive recruitment of foreign nationals. With this document, the commission sharpens its accusations against the Kremlin and joins other organizations, such as Amnesty International, in documenting what they describe as the coercive recruitment and trafficking of foreign nationals.

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