The Telegram channel of the Ministry of Justice: Legal Information recalled that the recruitment of citizens of Uzbekistan to serve in foreign paramilitary and law enforcement agencies will entail criminal liability.
In an interview with Daryo.uz on February 28, Uzbek Ambassador to Ukraine Alisher Kurmanov said the embassy had not received any information about Uzbeks who could be participating in the hostilities or were wounded.
“I don't think there are Uzbeks who would take such a step,” he said. Our compatriots came here for a different purpose, mainly for earning money. If there was such information, the Ukrainians would definitely inform us. But they did not report,” said Alisher Kurmanov.
Earlier, on February 25, a video was posted on social media showing an Uzbek-speaking driver driving a truck with Russian troops in Donbass.
Nstoyasheye Vremya, citing foreign media outlets, reported that Russia was enlisting Uzbek migrants in the invasion of Ukraine and added that Uzbek migrants are find such jobs in the Russian army through the UzMigrant website. The reason why migrants agree to work in the war zone is to fast track Russian citizenship or a good salary.
UzMigrant said that it was not intended to help migrants find work in the Russian army and that it was a legal information service for Uzbek-speaking migrants in Central Asia.
“We do not call on any citizens (be it Uzbeks or citizens of other countries) to join the invasion in Ukraine. We do not cooperate with any military or paramilitary structures,” UzMigrant said in a statement.
Note: The Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan establishes liability for mercenarism under two articles.
In particular, according to the Article 154 of the Criminal Code, in hostilities on the territory of another state or on its side, is punishable by imprisonment for five to ten years.
This Article also contains the responsibility for training or funding mercenarism.
The Article 154-1 of the Code defines responsibility for joining foreign troops.
