Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Russia Prof. Janitha Liyanage said she has requested a meeting with Russian defence authorities to seek information whether there are any former members of the Sri Lankan military involved in the military operations carried out by Russia against Ukraine.
The Ambassador said there is no official information that Sri Lankan ex-military personnel have joined the Russian army and are engaged in military operations, but due to the recent death of several Sri Lankans who have joined the Russian Army, the discussion has been requested from the Russian Defence Ministry to obtain specific information regarding the above.
The Ambassador stated that she has requested a discussion from the Russian Defence Ministry but has not received a discussion so far and said that she is hopeful an opportunity will be given.
She said that she can get specific information about whether there are Sri Lankans connected to the Russian forces, how many there are, when they joined the Russian forces.
Prof.Liyanage said ex-servicemen from Sri Lanka are joining the Russian Army through private agencies expecting higher salary.
She said that the embassy does not have any information about them due to their arrival being organised on a personal level.The Sri Lankan Ambassador pointed out that the embassy receives information that Sri Lankans are involved in the Russian army after they die or are injured and hospitalised, but in some cases such information is not received and this is a sad situation.
Mahinda Aluthgedera