Ahead of BRICS Summit, Russian military discharges 85 Indians

As many as 85 Indian nationals have been discharged from the Russian military so far and efforts are underway to secure the release of 20 more Indians, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has said.

The Indian side is expected to take up the issue of discharge of the remaining Indians when Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday (October 22) on the margins of the BRICS Summit in the Russian city of Kazan, people familiar with the matter said.

‘India in close touch with interlocutors’

Modi had strongly raised the issue of early discharge of the Indian nationals working in the Russian Army during his talks with Putin in Moscow in July.

The Indian side is in "very close touch" with interlocutors in the foreign and defence ministries of Russia on the issue of Indians "who were, illegally or otherwise, contracted into fighting in the Russian Army", Misri said at a media briefing on Modi's visit to Russia for the BRICS Summit on Monday (October 21).

The prime minister will leave for Kazan on Tuesday morning.

9 dead, 20 still remain trapped

"Our understanding, at the present moment, as per present information, is that about 85 people have returned from Russia. Unfortunately, we have also had the return of some mortal remains of people who lost their lives during the conflict," Misri said.

"Our understanding is that nearly 20 people still remain (in the Russian Army) and we are pressing our interlocutors for an early discharge of all remaining Indians in the armed forces there," he said.

Nine Indians have died while serving in the Russian Army, according to official data.

In August, the Russian embassy said Moscow and New Delhi are working in close coordination for an early "identification and discharge" of the Indian nationals who voluntarily joined contractual work in the military service and now want to return home.

Since April, the ministry of defence of the Russian Federation has stopped recruiting citizens of a number of foreign countries, including India, into the military service, it said.

(With inputs from agencies)