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A Russian training ship in the port of Havana in July
Photo: Ernesto Mastrascusa / EPA
According to the Interior Ministry, 17 people have been arrested in Cuba who are said to be part of a network that recruits men for the war in Ukraine. Among those arrested were the "internal organizer of these activities" and two recruiters, said the investigator in charge, César Rodríguez, on Thursday (local time). He did not provide any information on the nationality of those arrested.
According to the prosecutor's office, the suspects face up to 30 years in prison, life imprisonment or the death penalty, depending on the severity and nature of the crime. The allegations include human trafficking, fighting as a mercenary and "hostile acts" against a foreign state.
On Monday, the Cuban government said it had uncovered an alleged Russian network for the illegal recruitment of Cubans for "military operations in Ukraine." The aim of the network is to integrate Cubans living in Russia and Cuba into the armed forces involved in military actions in Ukraine.
Reports on recruitment activities
Cuban state television showed an interview with the father of two young men recruited by the network, who recounted how one of his sons left Cuba in July. The second is in the custody of the Cuban authorities.
US media reported on the case of two 19-year-olds who were recruited via the online service Facebook with the promise to get them work as bricklayers in the Russian army in Ukraine. Other witnesses confirmed that they had been recruited directly by the Russian armed forces.
Moscow and Havana had recently intensified their relations. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel met Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin in Moscow at the end of last year. In June, Cuban Defense Minister Álvaro López Miera was received by his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu. The Cuban government denies any support from Moscow in the war in Ukraine.
sak/AFP