Hindustan Times reports that Indian authorities have issued a fresh warning to citizens after new reports emerged of men being lured into joining the Russian Army under false pretenses and deployed to the frontlines in Ukraine.

India urges citizens to avoid Russian military recruitment

India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) issued a strong advisory on 11 September 2025 warning Indian nationals against accepting any offers to join the Russian Army, calling such a course “fraught with danger,” Hindustan Times says. The warning comes after The Hindu reported that two Indian men, speaking by phone from Selydove — a town in Donetsk Oblast captured by Russia in November 2024 — said they had been tricked into traveling to Russia on the promise of construction jobs and were then forced into combat roles in Ukraine.

The men said they were part of a group of at least 15 Indian nationals who had entered Russia over the past six months using student or visitor visas. According to the report, the agent who had promised construction work instead sent them to the battlefield. Their claims add to growing fears that Indian citizens are being recruited into foreign armies through deception, placing them at grave risk.

Ministry demands release of Indians forced into frontline roles

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that India has raised the matter with Russian authorities in both Moscow and Delhi.

“We are also in touch with the families of the affected Indian citizens,” he said.

Jaiswal emphasized that the government has repeatedly warned citizens over the past year about the dangers of joining the Russian military.

“We once again strongly urge all Indian nationals to stay away from any offers to join the Russian army, as this is a course fraught with danger,” he added.

Ukrainian forces are striking targets in the occupied territories of Donetsk Oblast to halt Russian preparation for an autumn counteroffensive, says Oleksii Hetman, Radio NV reports. 

Ukrainian attacks lay the groundwork for an advance

“The Russians are planning very powerful attacks, so they are pulling in troops and redeploying,” explains Hetman. 

That’s why Ukraine must destroy and weaken them as much as possible, and prepare for its own offensive actions. 

A variety of Ukrainian weapons

Hetman believes that it is difficult to say exactly which weapons were used in the strikes, but that is not critical.

“We have a large arsenal of missiles: ‘Palyanytsya,’ ‘Peklo,’ ‘Trembita,’ ‘Flamingo.’ What exactly hit doesn’t make much difference. We carefully plan attacks and don’t use high-powered missiles where smaller ones are sufficient,” he says.

Precision strike strategy

According to the expert, every attack is carefully calculated. Ukraine employs its weapons based on the strategic importance of each target: more powerful missiles are used only where maximum effect is needed.

These actions drain the Russian military and set the conditions for future offensive operations.

Four Ukrainian soldiers walked free this week after hiding in a hospital on Russian-controlled territory for over three years.

The rescue by naval special forces unit “Angels” marks one of the longest documented cases of military personnel surviving in enemy territory.

The operation began when Presidential Commissioner for Military Personnel Rights Olha Reshetylova learned about a Marine Corps serviceman’s twin brother. The marine had been severely wounded during 2022 fighting in eastern Ukraine and ended up in a hospital, where doctors concealed him from Russian security forces.

But he wasn’t alone. Three National Guard soldiers had also been sheltering in the same facility since 2022, according to Naval Forces Commander Oleksiy Neizhpapa.

The multi-phase operation required careful planning due to several complicating factors.

• All personnel were in illegal status on occupied territory (didn’t accept Russian documents)
• active combat operations continued in the area
• Russian special services had intensified filtration procedures (systematic identity checks, interrogations, and searches used to identify people with pro-Ukrainian loyalties).

Neizhpapa said the primary goal was eliminating immediate threats to the servicemen’s lives. The hospital had provided cover for three years, but the situation couldn’t continue indefinitely.

The successful mission extracted the marine, three National Guard fighters, and one hospital medical worker who had assisted in concealing the military personnel. 

Neizhpapa did not provide any other specifics of how the operation was conducted to return these fighters home.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected the concept of territorial concessions to Russia, arguing that such exchanges would not guarantee lasting peace.

According to Zelenskyy during a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Russian President Vladimir Putin would require years and millions of soldiers to fully occupy Donetsk Oblast. Despite Russia currently controlling approximately 75-79% of the oblast, Ukrainian forces continue inflicting heavy casualties on advancing troops while defending remaining territory.

The Ukrainian leader pointed to Putin’s limited territorial gains over four years of the full-scale war, noting that Russia has failed to capture the remaining approximate 30% of the region despite losing over 100,000 military personnel there.

“For four years he has not been able to occupy even 30% of one region. If he goes further, he will need years, but the question is not only about time, but also that he will have to sacrifice millions of soldiers,” Zelenskyy stated.

Donetsk has become Ukraine’s defensive stronghold. Russian forces throw waves of soldiers against fortified Ukrainian positions, suffering massive casualties for minimal territorial gains. The region’s strategic value extends beyond military considerations—it represents Ukrainian identity and constitutional integrity, Zelenskyy argued.

The president emphasized what territorial concessions would mean for ordinary Ukrainians. Displaced residents want to return to their homes despite current circumstances making this unrealistic.

“For someone this is just territory, but for us it is our life, our history, our Constitution,” he said.

Zelenskyy dismissed territorial exchange proposals as lacking substance, citing trust issues with Putin. “If someone supports this crazy idea, then who can guarantee that Putin will not continue [the war]? No one can give guarantees,” he said.

On 2 September, Ukrainian forces have liberated the village of Udachne in Donetsk Oblast after two weeks of house-to-house fighting. The village sits 10 km west of the strategic town of Pokrovsk, where Ukrainian troops repelled 46 Russian assault attempts across multiple settlements in the area.

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Western sanctions against Russia are working and are already hitting the aggressor’s economy hard, according to Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, which cited declines in key sectors. At the same time, the Kremlin is trying to offset its losses by looting temporarily occupied Ukrainian lands.

Sanctions squeeze the Russian economy

Business activity in Russia continues to fall. The manufacturing PMI, calculated by S&P Global, dropped to 48.7 in August out of 100 points, marking the third consecutive month in contraction territory.

Sunflower oil production in Russia also fell by 11% year-on-year. The coal sector is even worse off: 23 enterprises have halted operations due to the crisis, while 129 mines and open-pit sites, responsible for up to 85% of the country’s coal output, are seeking government support.

Coal and grain from occupied territories

Despite the crisis, Russia is trying to keep its economy afloat by plundering Ukrainian lands. New images from temporarily occupied Mariupol have shown how Russian forces are loading ships with stolen grain and coal. 

“Mariupol port. Two ships are being loaded at the same time… We expect the coal ship to head to the port of Temryuk for export clearance to Algeria, and the bulk carrier with grain to go to Egypt. Looting has predictably resumed,” reported Petro Andriushchenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation.

Stolen grain becomes the Kremlin’s business

According to the Center for National Resistance, Russia has turned stolen Ukrainian grain into a global business. Wheat that Moscow claims as “Russian” is purchased by 70 countries, including Egypt, Türkiye, and Iran. 

Ukraine brings heroes home

On 24 August 2025, Ukraine, on its Independence Day, completed a combined prisoner exchange, returning both military personnel and civilians. According to Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for Prisoner Affairs, the United Arab Emirates assisted in the release of civilians.

Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said that Ukraine was also involving Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in efforts to accelerate the return of illegally deported Ukrainian children stolen by Russian forces. 

Who has been returned? 

• As agreed in Istanbul, Ukrainian forces and eight civilians were released, including:
• Soldiers from the Air Assault, Air Force, and Navy units
• Defenders from the Territorial Defense, the National Guard, and the Border Service
• Enlisted and NCO personnel, most of whom spent over three years in captivity
• Two journalists: Dmytro Khilyuk and Mark Kaliushk
• Medic Serhii Kovaliov of the “Hospitallers” battalion.

   

• Former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolaienko

“Also returning home is the former mayor of Kherson, Volodymyr Mykolaienko, who refused to collaborate with the occupiers,” the coordination headquarters added.

According to the Russian military, 146 Russian soldiers returned to Russia in exchange for 146 Ukrainian soldiers. In addition, 8 residents of the Kursk Oblast also returned to Russia, the ministry specifies.

Where did they serve?

The returning personnel had defended strategic locations across Mariupol, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Sumy, and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, with many coming from temporarily occupied territories and Crimea.

Reintegration and support

Released persons will receive medical care, examinations, treatment, state benefits, rehabilitation, and societal reintegration. Special thanks were extended to the UAE for facilitating the release of civilian citizens.

The Coordination Headquarters adds that it will continue working to locate and return every Ukrainian held in Russian captivity.

Earlier, Ukraine brought back home the last defender of Zmiinyi or Zmiinyi (Snake) Island. Vitalii Hyrenko returned home after spending more than three years in Russian captivity.

The defenders of Zmiinyi Island in the Black Sea became known in 2022 for the now-iconic phrase: “Russian warship, go f*ck yourself.” Ukrainian border guards stationed on the island received a demand to surrender from Russian warships.