Another soldier, 34-year-old Ratna Karki, said: “The Russians just commanded us from behind. We were like their shield.”
Bhandari added: “They [Russian commanders] even make us go and inspect enemy grounds which is very scary. I have killed so many, or else they would kill me.
“I want to get back home. When I talk to my family, I say I am safe, for them not to worry. But it’s a horror, I could be dead anytime.”
Bhandari highlighted that many Nepalese fighters have not even been paid for their time in Ukraine.
Amrit Bahadur Rai, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Al Jazeera: “We are in regular communication with the Russian government, and have asked them for the name list of Nepali recruits, to repatriate them and send dead bodies soon.
“We have also urged them to provide compensation to the families of the deceased.”
The Russian government has not addressed the allegations publicly.
