The list of those killed – including citizens of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan – shows casualty figures far higher in some cases than those so far released or acknowledged by govts of the region. The data also names Southasians known to have been recruited into the Russian military from these countries, with a tally of 1,923 recruits. The data — provided to Himal Southasian and Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project by Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of Wars, and in part obtained from sources within the Russian military as well – covers the period from the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 to Sept 2025.
Sri Lanka tops the list of deaths, with at least 275 citizens killed in action out of at least 751 recruited, says the Himal report published on March 5. “The actual number of Sri Lankan nationals recruited into the Russian army, as well as those killed or missing in action, is likely significantly higher,” the Coordination Headquarters told Himal. The country’s foreign minister, Vijitha Herath, informed the Sri Lankan parliament last year that 59 Sri Lankans had been killed out of 554 recruited as of Jan 2025. The Sri Lankan foreign ministry had not responded to questions from Himal.
