NEW DELHI: Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Monday that 139 of the 227 Indian nationals recruited into the Russian armed forces had been discharged, while 51 had died. India continues to have talks with Moscow to secure the release and repatriation of those still serving.Misri gave the figures while responding to a question on Indians serving in the Russian army during a Ministry of External Affairs briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kyrgyzstan.He said the issue of Indian nationals being recruited into the Russian armed forces had been raised with Russia “at various levels on various occasions”.“At last count, we had information about 227 Indian nationals who had been recruited into the Russian army,” Misri said. “Out of that, we have information that 139 of our nationals have been discharged from the army. And unfortunately, of course, we have information also about 51 people who have perished so far.”Misri said India remained engaged with Moscow to secure the early discharge and return of those whose cases were still pending.“This is an issue that we are in constant discussions with the Russian side,” he said.He added that the Indian Embassy in Moscow was regularly monitoring the situation and working with Russian authorities to facilitate the release and repatriation of the remaining Indian nationals.“Our embassy in Moscow is monitoring this situation regularly with regard to the release and repatriation of these Indian citizens,” Misri said, adding that India was seeking to ensure that those still serving were discharged at the earliest and returned to their families.
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MEA’s remarks come as PM Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting in Bishkek.During the meeting, Modi stressed the need for the world to move from an era of “endless wars” towards the “end of war”, while the two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation and global developments.Misri also said India and Russia were looking to expand bilateral trade. He said an Indian Exporters Forum would be organised alongside the next annual summit in Russia to encourage Indian businesses to diversify and increase exports to the Russian market.