Fraught with danger: India urges citizens to 'stay away' from offers to join Russian army

India on Thursday urged its nationals to stay away from joining Russian army amid reports that Indian men are recruited as support staff in the military.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a statement demanded that Russia end its practice of recruiting Indian nationals to its army. New Delhi also demanded the release of all the Indians currently serving in Russian armed forces following reports of fresh recruitment of Indians by the Russian military.

MEA also cautioned its nationals to not take offers to join the Russian military in view of inherent "risks and dangers" involved.

"We have seen reports about Indian nationals having been recruited recently into the Russian army," external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement.

"The government has on several occasions over the past one year underlined the risks and dangers inherent in this course of action and cautioned Indian citizens accordingly," the statement read.

"We have also taken up the matter with Russian authorities, both in Delhi and Moscow, asking that this practice be ended and that our nationals be released. We are also in touch with the families of the affected Indian citizens.

"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," Jaiswal added.