Jordan has called on Russia to stop recruiting Jordanians to fight in the Ukraine war, saying that it is working to repatriate bodies of its nationals who were killed after they fought on behalf of Moscow.
The move constitutes rare criticism by Jordan of Moscow. The kingdom has a defence pact with Washington and is dependent on US aid, but has refrained from criticising Russia over the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Jordan has however, voiced concern over the takeover of territory.
Jordan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement it "is demanding from the Russian authorities to stop recruiting Jordanians" and end the service of current recruits.
It confirmed reports of two Jordanians recruited by Russia were killed in November, without disclosing how many Jordanians have been killed or recruited in total.
The kingdom "will take all available measures to stop this (recruitment process", the statements said, adding that groups it did not name have been recruiting Jordanians and exposing them to danger". The ministry is taking "the necessary legal and diplomatic measures to stop these practices, which contravene Jordanian and international law".
The Ukrainian embassy in Amman claimed in November that Jordanians were among "thousands of citizens of foreign states" who "have become victims" Russian recruitment.
They often "enter into arrangements with Russian authorities in exchange for promises of economic or social benefits, such as Russian citizenship, financial compensation, or plots of land (in occupied Ukraine)".
Russian law allows foreign residents who speak Russian to join its military under contract. Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow significantly relaxed these rules to make it easier for foreigners to enlist, often in exchange for fast-tracked Russian citizenship.
Iraq is also confronting the issue of young men leaving to fight for Russia. Unofficial figures put the number of Iraqis recruited into the war at around 5,000, with 3,000 fighting for Russia and 2,000 for Ukraine.
It is unclear who is involved in organising the recruitment, but Iraqis typically obtain tourist visas from travel agencies who make all other arrangements, Iraqi officials said.
