The U.S. Department of State said on Saturday, October 11th, citing multiple reports, that Cuba has sent hundreds of men to Ukraine to fight alongside the Russian forces.
Havana rejected the U.S. claims, stating that it “does not have accurate information about Cuban citizens” who may be participating in the Russo-Ukrainian war “on their own initiative” or “within the armed forces of either side.”
The Cuban Foreign Ministry said 26 Cubans had been sentenced to prison terms ranging from five to 14 years for mercenary activity since September 2023, when reports circulated of Cubans being sent to the front in Ukraine.
Relatives of Cubans who left for Russia in 2023 told reporters at the time that their loved ones had been deceptively recruited through ads on social media.
In May, when a Ukrainian initiative encouraged foreign combatants to surrender, Kyiv said more than 1,000 Cuban mercenaries had been recruited by Russia since early 2023. “We have reliable information on the names and personal details of 1,028 Cubans who signed contracts with the Russian armed forces in 2023–2024,” said the ‘I Want to Live’ project at the time.
