01/09/2026
RUSSIA MUST EXPLAIN: WHO AUTHORISED THE ALLEGED MILITARY TRAINING OF THREE ZAMBIANS?
The allegations surrounding three Zambians who reportedly travelled to Russia for specialised protection or military-related training have now raised questions that cannot simply be dismissed as political propaganda.
According to the Zambian government's own account, the three men were intercepted at Kenneth Kaunda International Airport after returning from abroad. Government officials said the arrests followed months of intelligence gathering, monitoring and analysis.
THAT ADMISSION RAISES A FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION:
If Zambian security agencies were monitoring these individuals, what exactly did they know about their activities in Russia?
And more importantly, what was the Russian government's position?
If it is true that the three underwent military or specialised security training in Russia, who authorised that training? Which Russian institution or organisation provided it? Who sponsored or facilitated it? Where exactly did the training take place? And what was the legal basis for foreign nationals receiving such training?
These questions matter because the Zambian government has also referred to military-style equipment, uniforms, gadgets and other materials allegedly recovered from the suspects.
SO WE ASK:
What exactly was recovered from them?
Were these ordinary protective-security items, military equipment, training materials or something else?
There is another issue that deserves clarification.
If Zambian security agencies had been monitoring these individuals for months, including their alleged activities abroad, does that mean Zambian intelligence had information about their movements inside Russian territory?
If so, how was that information obtained?
Was the monitoring conducted in cooperation with Russian authorities, or independently?
If it was conducted independently, Russia has every right to ask whether a foreign intelligence operation was taking place on its territory without the knowledge or authorisation of Russian security authorities.
THAT IS NOT A TRIVIAL DIPLOMATIC QUESTION.
Russia is a sovereign state with its own intelligence, immigration, border-control and security institutions. If three foreign nationals allegedly received military-related training and subsequently travelled through Russian airports carrying equipment that the Zambian authorities later considered significant, how did they pass through Russian immigration, airport security and other relevant controls without attracting attention?
Yet, according to the Zambian government's account, they were subsequently intercepted when they returned to Zambia.
WHO KNEW WHAT, AND WHEN?
There is also a wider geopolitical sensitivity.
Russia's history with private military formations, including the Wagner Group associated with the late Yevgeny Prigozhin, makes allegations involving foreign military training particularly sensitive. This does not prove that the three Zambians had any connection whatsoever to Wagner or any Russian military structure. But it explains why the international community would reasonably want clarity rather than speculation.
Zambians are already deeply concerned because opposition figures have been arrested in connection with allegations surrounding this matter. The public has therefore been left with an impression that Russia may somehow have trained Zambians to return home and destabilise the country.
If that impression is false, Russia should say so clearly.
And if the allegations are true, the Russian authorities should explain exactly what happened, who authorised it and under what circumstances.
The Zambian government also has an obligation to answer the questions it has itself created.
If our security agencies had been monitoring these individuals before their return, how much did they know about the alleged Russian training?
Did Zambia notify Russian authorities?
Did Russian authorities cooperate with the investigation?
Was the Russian government aware of the training?
Was the training conducted by a private organisation, a security company, a military institution or another entity?
And what exactly were the three men trained to do?
These are not questions about defending Russia or defending the Zambian opposition.
They are questions of national security, sovereignty, diplomatic accountability and public confidence.
The international community is watching.
Therefore, Russia should come out and explain its role, if any, in this matter.
And the Zambian government must equally provide a full account of what its intelligence and security agencies knew, how they knew it, and what evidence supports the allegations being made against these individuals.
Until those questions are answered transparently, speculation will continue to fill the information vacuum.
Zambia deserves facts. Russia deserves clarity. And the international community deserves the truth.
By Ubuntu Integrity Media Zambia
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Zambia Russian Foreign Ministry - МИД России Russian Embassy in Ethiopia - Посольство России в Эфиопии
