President Gustavo Petro denounced Ukraine’s racist treatment of mercenaries from Colombia.

In a post on social media platform X, Petro warned that Colombian mercenaries are being treated as an “inferior race” and “cannon fodder.”

Ukrainians treat Colombians as an inferior race. I ask the Colombian mercenaries, who are being handled like cannon fodder… to return to the country immediately.

Gustavo Petro

The president spoke out after complaints emerged that a group of 35 Colombians was being held in Ukraine against their will.

According to Caracol Radio, the group was not allowed to leave Ukraine after they requested discharge as mercenaries.

Their families told the radio station that the Ukrainian forces confiscated their phones and passports, and transported them to unknown destinations without proper explanation.

The Colombian nationals have also been subjected to physical and psychological abuse by the Ukrainian army, a soldier told Semana.

The mercenaries also reported that they were forced to sign a contract in a language they did not understand and had not been paid what they were promised.

The group requested the Colombian government to intervene and help them return to the country, and hold Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responsible for any consequences.

They have practically kidnapped us. They are armed. They have taken photos of us for the police. They don’t want to let us go.

Colombian mercenary

Eye witness testimonies gathered by Semana show that physical and psychological abuses were not isolated incidents.

The Colombian soldiers said that they experienced “the worst humiliation at the hands of the people we came to help.”

One of the soldiers, Enerlin Esteban Osten, also claimed that the reason for not letting them leave was purely economic.

This is horrible, tenacious corruption. They basically want soldiers killed so they can keep the insurance.

Enerlin Esteban Osten

While exact figures are unavailable, hundreds of Colombians are expected to have traveled to Ukraine to fight the Russian invasion of the eastern European country.