Kenya, Estonia suffer similar excesses from Russia

Kenya and Estonia are two countries from such disparate worlds: One is the European Union’s digital hub, leading the digital push for the first world. The other is a regional power house in East and Central Africa, taking baby steps in the digital space. Both, however, suffer peculiar excesses occasioned by Russia.

With its forever-expanding digital prowess, the Baltic state, a sworn enemy of Russia- as is the entire Baltic and Nordic area, is interested in growing relations with Sub-Saharan Africa. Because of that, it has elected to base its mission in Kenya, where the ambassador will be domiciled and serve the area South of the Sahara to Cape Town.

This comes at a time when the African Centre for Strategic Studies has listed Kenya and South Africa among states in the Global South that have been greatly affected by Russia’s predatory recruitment for its war against Ukraine.

“Estonia is opening its first embassy in Sub-Saharan Africa in Nairobi because we have long-standing cooperation in digitalisation, education and innovation with Kenya”. Said Daniel Schaer, Estonia’s ambassador to Africa, “The Estonian Centre for International Development and Estonia’s Trade Office are already present in Nairobi. We see Kenya as a gateway for Estonians and Estonian companies to Africa”.

Estonia has suffered serious cyber-attacks from Russia, beginning in April 2007 in what was described as the first major act of state-sponsored cyber warfare in history. The attack on the country’s IT infrastructure nearly paralysed all government services. In recent times, organised scams by Russian agents have hit the country’s politicians.

“A few years ago, a Prime Minister was pranked, Said an Internal Security Official speaking to us at an interview in Tallinn. He also asked us not to use his name.

“She was called by some radio comedians who recorded the call. He was trying to get her to say something that she otherwise wouldn’t in public. The caller was acting as if they were an African leader. He said he had earlier met her and she had expressed reservations on some issues affecting the people here. That was when the PM realised that the caller was not an African leader she had met earlier. She had suspicions that something didn’t add up. The recorded call was publicised- The caller was a Russian agent”

Kenya, on its part, has not yet fully grasped Russia’s imperialistic heart and has been blowing hot and cold until the media started highlighting the disturbing trend of unscrupulous agents duping Kenyans into joining the Russian army to be used as war expendables against Ukraine, to die for Russia.

“Estonia is open to sharing our experiences in dealing with misinformation as well as Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference”. Said Schaer regarding disinformation used by agencies to dupe Kenyans into joining the Russian army.

Signs are clear that Russia’s Vladimir Putin seeks to walk in the imperialistic footsteps of Peter, the Tsar, whose hometown of St Petersburg is named after. Some say he mirrors Alexander II, the Tsar who ordered the 19th-century ethnic cleansing in the Northern Caucasus, taking over present-day Sochi into the Russian fold. That was, however, at the expense of the Circassian people who were indigenous to the Coastal highlands North of the Black Sea - whole populations were exterminated as some ran away.

Putin at the June 2025 International Economic Forum in St Petersburg referred to Ukraine as part of Russia.  “I have said many times that I consider the Russian and Ukrainian peoples to be one people. In this sense, all of Ukraine is ours,” Putin told forum guests. “We have an old rule. Wherever a Russian soldier sets foot is ours.” According to the Atlantic Council, in June 2025.

In a February 2024 interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, his responses started with reflections from the vaults of Russia’s history, believing that his country has an honest claim to territories that belonged to it before 1991. 

Because of this, Estonia, which shares a border with Russia, remains alert. The country has laid down pillars that guide its dealings with Russia, among them is support for Ukraine and confiscation of Assets. The country advocates for total victory for Ukraine and confiscation of frozen Russian assets to fund the reconstruction of Ukraine. Second is rejection of negotiations; Estonia opposes prematurely opening dialogue with the Kremlin, viewing negotiations as a tactic for Russia to stall punitive measures and evade sanctions. Third is strict border controls following Russia's aggression, with strict bans on Russian citizens holding short-term Schengen visas from entering the country for tourism or cultural purposes.

Putin’s imperialistic push is causing far-flung countries such as Kenya in the Global South to face tensions where at least 90 families from the villages are now pushing for compensation after their sons were killed for Russia. While Estonia knows its neighbour better, Kenya is still groping in the dark about who Russia is.  

For instance, when Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi returned from Moscow in March, he kept referring to Russia’s war against Ukraine as a Special Military Operation.  International security researchers understand that such a reference is propaganda coined by Kremlin hawks as a way of facing off questions of accountability for war atrocities that draw demands for reparations.

Malaysia-based International Security and war researcher, Chasseur Group, says the argument is that Russia does not fight wars. “It just conducts operations because wars can only be fought by belligerents who are on equal terms.” Says Chasseur Chief researcher Munira Mustafa, “calling it a special military operation uses the logic of policing within the same empire, not a real military confrontation”

While some initially thought that reports of Russia’s war affecting Kenya were propaganda pushed by Ukraine and its friends in the European Union, reports of Kenya’s state security agencies, filed before parliament, erased all doubts about Putin’s decisions, now hitting villages in Kenya.

 A report of the state’s intelligence agency filed by Majority Leader of the National Assembly Kimani Ichungwa in Mid - February said the ongoing war against Ukraine had triggered recruitment of foreign fighters by the Russian military through rogue agencies and individuals in Kenya. The agencies targeted ex-military, ex-police officers, as well as civilians aged between the mid-twenties and 50 years who are desperate for job opportunities.

He told the house that the agencies enticed Kenyans, promising them lucrative terms of service, including salaries of about Sh350,000 per month and hefty bonuses of between Sh900,000 and Sh1.2 million, as well as eventual issuance of Russian citizenship.

“So far, over 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited and have departed to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war”, He said and added. “Kenyans leave the country on tourist visas to join the Russian Army through Istanbul, Turkey, as well as Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE)”.

While Estonia holds no grey areas in its dealings with Russia, it maintains a staunchly anti-Kremlin, pro-Ukrainian stance. Kenya, on its part, condemns Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a violation of international law and territorial integrity but still seeks to have a bilateral relationship, focusing on economic partnerships.

 Today, the government is facing hard questions over the loss of Kenyan lives in a war that is not of their motherland, but government officials remain conflicted on the matter. Some officials think that Kenyans who have found themselves on the warfront did so willingly by signing contracts. While appearing before the Senate Standing Committee on foreign relations on April 2, Mudavadi said;

“Contrary to prevailing reports, the majority of Kenyans enlisted in the Special Military Operations of Russia with full knowledge and willingly. They signed valid contracts to participate either as logistics officers or for combat,” Mudavadi said, reading from a statement “The lucrative compensation ranging from Sh1.5 to 3 million upon joining, and a monthly salary of Sh50,000 to Sh350,000, promise of citizenship and hefty gratuity upon completion of the contract, has been a major motivation”.

 Among the mitigation measures, the government has put in place to manage the disturbing matter, as many unemployed youthful Kenyans seeking jobs outside the country are compensated for lost lives.

“A proposal is under consideration to ensure that all victims are adequately compensated by the Russian Federation”. Mudavadi told the house.

 I’m going to Last week, however, some of the families that have been in the forefront pushing for a decisive hand from the government over Russia’s use of their relatives as war expendables said their long wait for the compensation promise is bearing little fruit. Others claimed not to have been contacted, as some spoke of officials sending them regret letters that their relatives are not on the list of individuals who have fallen victim to Russia’s war.