Putin approved the refusal to extradite foreigners who served in the Russian Armed Forces
8 March 21:15
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has signed a law prohibiting the extradition to foreign countries for criminal prosecution or enforcement of sentences of foreign citizens and stateless persons who are serving or have served in the Russian Armed Forces or other formations and have participated in combat operations.
The relevant document was posted on Sunday, March 8, on the legal acts portal, according to "Komersant Ukrainian", citing Russian propaganda media.
The changes were made to part one of Article 464 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation. It concerns the refusal to extradite persons upon request.
Foreigners allowed to serve in the Russian Armed Forces during mobilization
Prior to this, on July 8, 2025, Putin signed another decree allowing foreigners to serve in the Russian army during mobilization.
According to the document, contracts must be concluded before the end of mobilization, the termination of martial law, or the end of wartime. Until then, foreigners were only allowed to serve in the Russian army in cases of emergency or martial law and armed conflict. Putin’s decree on mobilization of September 21, 2022, adopted against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, has not been repealed and remains in force.
US intelligence: Russian Armed Forces recruited about 30,000 soldiers per month
According to US intelligence, the Russian Armed Forces recruited about 30,000 soldiers every month, and according to European estimates, 40,000. On July 2, 2025, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, reported that since the beginning of the year, 210,000 people (35,000 per month) had signed contracts with the Ministry of Defense to participate in the war against Ukraine.
