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Did Laos intend to send troops to Ukraine to back Russia?
Vientiane might have held back because of worries about international reprisals, observers say
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Worries about potential international reprisals and censure, on top of being exposed by Kyiv, may have prevented Laos from sending troops to back Russia in the Ukraine war, analysts say.
Laotian state media reported this week that the country had refuted recent claims circulating in foreign news outlets suggesting it was preparing for troop deployment to Russia’s military operations in Ukraine.
The reports said Moscow had attempted to persuade Laotian soldiers and citizens to fight in Ukraine by offering money and Russian citizenship. They also added that Russia had initially wanted to involve the Laotian armed forces’ engineering troops in demining operations in the Kursk region.
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The Kremlin was exploring ways to draw partner nations into the conflict “under the pretext of carrying out humanitarian projects in Russian regions bordering Ukraine”, the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine was cited by these reports as saying. “Laos is the latest country Russia is attempting to pull into the war.”
The suspicions of the Southeast Asian nation’s potential involvement in the conflict sounded plausible given its expertise in demining and ties with Moscow.
Vientiane said the claims were baseless and designed to cause confusion and damage the country’s international standing. Adding that no evidence existed to support the claims, Laos said the allegations were a “deliberate distortion of the truth” intended to create misunderstanding among the global community.
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