The Cameroonian government has confirmed that 16 of its nationals were killed while fighting for Russia in the war against Ukraine. This acknowledgment follows the leak of a diplomatic note sent by the Cameroonian foreign ministry to the Russian embassy, which the government has now verified as authentic.
For months, Yaoundé faced mounting pressure to address reports of its citizens being recruited into the conflict. Until this week, the government had maintained silence on the issue, marking this as the first official recognition of Cameroonian involvement in the invasion.
A pattern of recruitment
While the government has yet to issue a formal public statement, it provided a list of the 16 deceased individuals to the state broadcaster, CRTV. The ministry requested that families of the named men contact authorities regarding an "urgent matter," though it provided no further details on how the men were recruited or how they died.
Independent research group All Eyes on Wagner, which tracks mercenary activity, estimates the death toll for Cameroonian nationals is significantly higher. Their data suggests that 94 Cameroonians died in the war between 2023 and 2025.
Ukrainian intelligence agencies report that Russia has successfully recruited more than 1,700 individuals from 36 different African nations. These recruits are often lured by promises of lucrative employment, only to find themselves placed on the front lines of the war.
Cameroon is not alone in facing this crisis. Other African nations have struggled to stem the flow of citizens to the battlefield. Ghana has officially requested that Russia cease recruiting its nationals, citing reports that at least 55 Ghanaians have been killed.
In East Africa, Kenya has moved to shut down hundreds of recruitment agencies suspected of duping citizens with false job offers abroad. Meanwhile, South Africa recently repatriated 17 citizens who reported being trapped in the Donbas region after being deceived by similar contracts.
Internal memos from the Cameroonian defense ministry, seen by Reuters, indicate that officials were aware of the trend as early as March 2025. In those documents, the defense minister expressed alarm over soldiers abandoning their posts to travel to the conflict zone and ordered officers to increase oversight of their units.
Despite the confirmation of the 16 deaths, the Russian embassy has not responded to inquiries regarding the diplomatic note or the status of these military contractors.
