Repatriation of Filipino fighting in Ukraine eyed

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Monday it would exhaust all options to assist and repatriate a Filipino from Alcala, Pangasinan who was captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside Russian troops.

DFA Assistant Secretary Angelica Escalona confirmed that Raymond Gumangan was a “prisoner of war” (POW) in Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia, which the Philippines is not a party to, making his repatriation a “complicated process.”

“A release or repatriation of a prisoner of war is subject to agreements between parties to the conflict. The same goes for access to prisoners,” said Escalona partly in Filipino in a radio interview.

“Nevertheless, we are exploring all avenues to assist him,” she said, adding that, aside from Gumangan, there were five pending requests at the DFA for assistance to Filipinos fighting in the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

Based on information obtained by the agency, Gumangan was deployed with the Russian Armed Forces battling Ukrainian troops.

Escalona said the Philippines has sought the help of Ukrainian and Russian authorities, as well as the International Red Cross, for Gumangan.

The DFA official expressed confidence that Gumangan was in stable condition, citing international law, which mandates that POWs must be protected, treated humanely, adequately housed, and receive sufficient food, clothing, and medical care.

Reports on Gumangan’s recruitment followed the first-ever recorded death of a Filipino who was reportedly killed while fighting alongside Russian troops against Ukrainian forces.

Escalona confirmed the death of the Filipino mercenary but did not divulge his name, citing confidentiality.

In November last year, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the United States was recruiting Filipinos for the Ukrainian army, offering a monthly salary of P300,000. The Philippines and Ukraine denied this.

At present, Escalona said, the exact number of Filipinos in Ukraine is unknown due to the surge of unverified information.

In an 8 December Facebook post by the Ukrainian government, Gumangan said he left for Russia in September 2024 for employment, but ended up working in the Russian military and was deployed to fight in the Ukraine-Russia war.