More than 1,700 citizens from African countries are fighting in the Russian army against Ukraine, said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha.

According to an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent, the minister announced these figures at a joint press conference with Ghanaian Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa in Kyiv on Wednesday.

"We clearly see that Russia is trying to drag Africans into a war to the death. According to our data, more than 1,780 citizens from the African continent are currently fighting in the Russian army. In other words, we’re talking about mercenaries," Sybiha said.

According to the Foreign Minister, many mercenaries from African countries are dying in the war, and Ukrainian soldiers have already captured many of them. Mercenaries from 36 African countries are participating in the war against Ukraine.

Sybiha considers this a "major challenge."

"Russia is fraudulently dragging these citizens into war. It’s crucial to counter this, both in individual capitals and in cooperation with Ukraine: expose these schemes and prevent our citizens from being drawn into someone else’s war," the minister emphasized.

Sybiha said he had discussed this with his African colleagues and "there was a clear response."

"Decisions were made to increase penalties for ‘mercenarism’ in the Russian army. And we agreed with several countries on joint information campaigns on how to prevent these fraudulent actions by Russia," the Foreign Minister stated.

Sybiha assured that cooperation with the African side on this issue will continue.