In August, Ghana brought home the eleventh group of its citizens from the war zone in Ukraine. According to the government, 62 people from Ghana have died and 15 remain missing after being drawn into the war – in many cases having been recruited under false promises.

Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa raised the issue during an official visit to Moscow, where he met his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on 17 August. Ablakwa called for cooperation to end the illegal recruitment of young Ghanaians and advocated an African-led peace plan to resolve the conflict. Alongside men sent to the front as soldiers, women are also affected: recruited with the promise of regular work, they end up in Russian factories producing combat drones.

The visit also marked a deepening of relations between Accra and Moscow. The two sides signed an agreement waiving visa requirements for holders of diplomatic and service passports – the first such arrangement since the countries established diplomatic relations in 1958.