At least 55 Ghanaians have been killed fighting in the war in Ukraine, with two others currently held as prisoners of war, Ghana's Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said.

During a trip to Kyiv, Ablakwa stated that about 272 Ghanaians are believed to have been lured into the conflict since 2022, citing Ukrainian authorities. He described the figures as "depressing and frightening," saying Ghana "cannot turn a blind eye to these heartbreaking statistics."

Ablakwa did not specify which side the Ghanaians had been fighting on, but Ukraine's foreign minister said on Wednesday that more than 1,700 people from 36 African countries had been recruited to fight for Russia.

The 55 Ghanaians represent the highest number of casualties from a single African country officially confirmed in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Ablakwa said the casualty figures were "not just numbers, they represent human lives, the hope of many Ghanaian families and our nation."

He added that the Ghanaian government is committed to "tracking and dismantling all dark web illegal recruitment schemes" and launching intensive public awareness campaigns to prevent the country's youth from being drawn into the conflict.

"This is not our war and we cannot allow our youth to become human shields for others," he emphasized.

On Wednesday, Ghana's foreign minister urged President Volodymyr Zelensky to release two Ghanaian prisoners of war captured while fighting for Russia.

He called them "victims of manipulation, disinformation, misinformation, of criminal trafficking networks."

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly warned that anyone fighting for Russia would be treated as an enemy combatant, with surrender as the only safe route to be processed as a prisoner of war.

Source: www.bbc.com