L’Ukraine capture pour la première fois un Indonésien combattant pour la Russie
Les forces ukrainiennes ont capturé Sukamto Ayoк, 49 ans, citoyen indonésien de Blitar sur l’île de Java, recruté par la Russie et envoyé au combat en Ukraine. Envoyé dans une offensive en direction de Zaporijjia, il a été capturé après une frappe de drones ukrainiens. Jakarta a demandé à Moscou de mettre fin au recrutement de ses ressortissants.
L'essentiel
- Sukamto Ayoк est le premier citoyen indonésien capturé par l’Ukraine après avoir combattu pour la Russie.
- Le document qu’il devait signer était un contrat avec le ministère russe de la Défense, et non un contrat de construction.
- Il a été affecté à la 39e brigadeseparate de fusiliers motorisés russe.
- Il a été envoyé avec d’autres étrangers dans des offensives en direction de Zaporijjia, sans préparation au combat.
- Après une tentative de fuite avortée, il a été forcefully tatoué d’un numéro d’identification sur la poitrine.
- Un groupe de sa brigade a été frappé par des drones ukrainiens, après quoi il a atteint des positions ukrainiennes et a été capturé.
- En octobre, Dmytro Usov a rencontré l’ambassadeur d’Indonésie en Ukraine Arif Basalamah et a obtenu l’accès d’un consul au prisonnier.
Pourquoi c’est important
Le cas fournit des éléments concrets sur le recrutement de ressortissants étrangers dans l’armée russe, sur leur обман і sending them into combat, and confirms Indonesia’s formal appeal to Moscow to stop such recruitment. Authorities in Indonesia have also uncovered a human-trafficking network that used promises of well-paid logistics, border-security and construction work to recruit citizens into military service.
Ce qui s’est passé
Sukamto Ayoк arrived in Moscow on June 22, 2026, after a former classmate offered him work under a construction contract. The document he signed was in fact an agreement with Russia’s Ministry of Defence, and he was assigned to the 39th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade. On June 30, while being transported with 12 other people toward occupied Donetsk, he learned the true nature of the contract. After an attempt to escape with other Indonesians, he was caught and forcibly tattooed with an identification number on his chest. He and other foreign nationals under Russian officers were then sent to assault actions in Zaporizhzhia Oblast without combat preparation. During one of the assaults, his group was hit by Ukrainian drones and broken up. After wandering for several days, he reached Ukrainian positions and was taken prisoner.
Ce qu’en disent les sources ukrainiennes
Ukrainian reporting emphasizes that this was the first Indonesian citizen captured by Ukraine while fighting for Russia. It focuses on the deceptive recruitment contract, the forced tattooing, deployment to an assault toward Zaporijjia and the Ukrainian drone strike that led to the capture. Ukrainian sources also highlight the arrangement for an Indonesian consul to visit the prisoner and Indonesia’s appeal to Russia to halt recruitment.
Ce qu’en disent les sources internationales
International coverage places the individual case within broader concern over Indonesian citizens being deceived into military roles. It highlights Indonesia’s appeal to Russia, the discovery of a trafficking network operating through social media and messaging applications, and a sharp increase in foreign recruitment linked to Russia’s heavy losses.
Là où les récits divergent
The reported number of Indonesian citizens recruited by Russia varies with the timing of the count: about 283 during the first nine months of 2026, while 292 was reported by the time of Ayoк’s capture.
Contexte
Russia reportedly recruited about 283 Indonesian citizens in the first nine months of 2026, compared with no more than ten over the preceding three years. Indonesian police said a trafficking network recruited people through social networks and messaging applications, promising highly paid work in logistics, border security and defensive construction; some were then forced to sign mercenary contracts and sent to combat zones.