russia Uses Pressure on Migrants to Recruit Foreigners into the Army

moscow has developed a mechanism to forcibly recruit foreign nationals into military service while avoiding direct recruitment.

Amid significant losses in Ukraine, the kremlin has turned to a new source of recruits: migrants residing in russia without citizenship. Since most countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America officially oppose the recruitment of their citizens into the russian army, moscow has chosen a workaround – artificially creating conditions under which staying in the country without a passport of the rf becomes practically impossible. The only proposed solution is a contract with the russian armed forces, which automatically opens the path to citizenship.

According to the ministry of internal affairs of the rf, in 2024, more than 157,000 foreign nationals who violated migration laws were forcibly removed from the country – by 45% more than the previous year. In 2025, the figure dropped to 72,000 people. minister of internal affairs of the rf kolokoltsev explained the discrepancy simply: “We could have deported 10 times as many, but we lack funding”.  Those who were not deported may soon face an alternative – the front lines.

The agency has drafted amendments to the code of administrative offenses that significantly expand the grounds for exerting pressure on foreigners. These include liability for extremism, threats to public and information security, violations of religious legislation, coercion to strike, abuse of freedom of speech, and the dissemination of extremist content via audiovisual services. For violations of article 20.29 of the rf’s code of administrative offenses (“Dissemination of extremist materials”), deportation is proposed as the main punishment. Fines for violations of residency regulations will also increase significantly.

Increases in fines in russia are traditionally accompanied by an increase in bribes – and the kremlin understands this. The real aim of the mechanism is different: to force migrants seeking to normalize their families’ situation and avoid persecution to sign the contract voluntarily. Formally, there is no coercion, no recruitment. A person simply “chooses” citizenship through service in the aggressor’s army.