Peru has found that at least 11 of its citizens have died while serving with Russian forces in Ukraine, while 114 remain missing.
Peru has found that at least 11 of its citizens have died while serving with Russian forces in Ukraine, while 114 remain missing, and three are being held by the Ukrainian military.
According to the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, 459 nationals have joined the Russian military since 2022.
The figures were released as the Latin American nation announced the return of four citizens who had allegedly been lured to Russia with fraudulent job offers and sent to fight in Ukraine.
Two recently sought assistance from the Peruvian Embassy in Moscow, while the other two contacted its consular section in late July.
All four have since returned home and are receiving support from health and social services.
Peruvian authorities urged citizens to report suspected recruiters to prosecutors or police, while stressing that serving in a foreign military requires government authorization.
According to the EFE news agency, families recently demonstrated outside the Russian Embassy in Lima, demanding information about missing and wounded relatives.
The families said complaints filed in April had produced little progress, while Peru’s diplomatic requests to Moscow had gone unanswered.
Lima has since requested assistance from the International Committee of the Red Cross in locating those missing.
A family representative whose son is listed as missing estimated that at least 150 Peruvian recruits may have died, although Peruvian authorities have not confirmed the figure.
Russia Looks Abroad for Additional Manpower
The disclosure comes amid signs that Russia is facing growing pressure to replenish its forces.
Domestic military recruitment reportedly fell by around 20 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared with last year, while Russian casualties may be reaching 35,000 killed and wounded each month.
Alongside support from North Korea, Moscow is increasingly supplementing domestic recruitment with personnel from abroad, including citizens of several African and Latin American countries.
Pyongyang deployed thousands of troops and supplied weapons to support Russia’s war effort.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently claimed that Moscow was seeking another 30,000 North Korean soldiers.
Preparations were reportedly underway in Russia’s Voronezh region, near Ukraine.
South Korean estimates suggest that around 2,000 North Korean troops have been killed during the conflict.
