Russia will now require Sri Lanka Defence Ministry clearance for visit visas of ex-servicemen, Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Ali Sabry announced.
In a post on ‘X’, Minister Sabry said a constructive meeting had taken place with the Russian Ambassador in Colombo, Levan S. Dzhagaryan today.
The Foreign Minister said the discussion focused on addressing the urgent situation of Sri Lankans being deployed in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
During the discussion, it was agreed to take immediate steps to resolve these issues.
“Russia will now require Sri Lanka Defence Ministry clearance for visit visas of ex-servicemen. The upcoming visit by the State Minister of Foreign Affairs to Russia will enable further discussions to find a solution to this matter,” he said.
The government is currently involved in uncovering human trafficking rackets in Sri Lanka through which several war veterans had been sent to Russia to fight in mercenary groups in the conflict against Ukraine.
Several retired Army personnel have been arrested in the recent past for their involvement in sending Sri Lankans to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war promising several benefits.
The Defence Ministry recently confirmed that 16 Sri Lankans had died fighting in the Russia- Ukraine war, while nearly 600 Sri Lankans had been trafficked to Russia and are currently fighting in the war.
