September 2, 2026 | 02:48 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Minister for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra stated that the Indonesian government is currently verifying information regarding eight citizens who are suspected to have been recruited into the Russian army. The Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (FISU) had previously disclosed this information.
According to Yusril, the information needs to be thoroughly verified, including their identities, citizenship status, recruitment process, and the extent of their involvement. "It is important to ascertain who they are, the recruitment process, what was offered to them, and whether they indeed joined the Russian military," said Yusril in a written statement on Wednesday, September 2, 2026.
FISU claimed to have obtained several documents related to the recruitment of eight Indonesian citizens into the Russian military. The mentioned individuals in the report are Yuda Putra Pratama, Haryanto Dwi Kencana, Erwanda, Ngangun Hudri Fadli, Muhammad Syaripudin, M. Hadi Maulana, Wahyu Oktavian Iskandar, and Helmi Nuraha Hakim. According to the report, these individuals were initially recruited with job offers and promises of high salaries, non-combat duties, expedited Russian citizenship, and various social benefits. The service stated that job offers were used to lure foreign nationals who could be directed into military service.
If the information is proven true, Yusril said the government needs to address this issue from two perspectives. First, it concerns the protection of Indonesian citizens who may have been victims of fraud or exploitation. Second, it involves legal consequences if the individuals knowingly and without the President's permission entered the military service of a foreign country.
Indonesia has clear provisions regarding Indonesian citizens joining the military of a foreign country without the President's permission. Article 23 of Law Number 12 of 2006 concerning Indonesian Citizenship regulates the loss of citizenship, including for Indonesian citizens who join the military of a foreign country without prior permission from the President. However, this provision must be implemented based on verified facts and through applicable legal procedures.
Yusril emphasized that a person's citizenship status should not be determined solely based on one-sided news or information. There must be research and processes in accordance with legal regulations. "If it is proven that they meet the requirements for loss of citizenship, the government will certainly take steps in accordance with legal mechanisms," he said.
According to Yusril, the government also needs to investigate the recruitment patterns used. If there is indeed a network offering jobs to Indonesian citizens with specific purposes but then directing them into foreign military service, this matter needs serious attention. The government must ascertain who recruited them, how they were recruited, what was promised, and whether they were aware from the beginning that they would be placed in military service.
"This is important to determine whether they consciously made that decision or whether they were victims of exploitation," said Yusril.
Read: Russia Says Embassies Not Involved in Recruiting Foreign Soldiers
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