“Russians collected all Kenyans and did everything for them to go to the front line, to go to the death zone.”
Waihiga Mwaura speaks to Yurii Tokar the Ukraine ambassador to Kenya. The Ukrainian claims Russia deliberately deployed many conscripted Kenyans to the front line of the Russia-Ukraine war shortly before the Kenyan foreign minister arrived in Moscow with the intention of stopping recruitment of his countrymen.
The Russian embassy in Kenya did not immediately respond to the BBC's request for comment. It has previously denied any Government involvement in the illegal recruitment of Kenyan citizens. A representative of Kenya's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the BBC that "the government is not aware of such allegations and treats them as possible rumours and propaganda.”
Thank you to the Focus on Africa team for its help in making this programme. The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with John Healey, Nadia Calviño and Volodymyr Zelensky. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Waihiga Mwaura Producer: Cordelia Hemming Editor: Damon Rose
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(Image: Yurii Tokar. Credit: Getty Images)