Senegal's Foreign Ministry announced Thursday it had summoned Ukraine's Ambassador to Dakar, Yurii Pyvovarov, in response to his calls to recruit Senegalese to fight in Ukraine against Russia.

In a statement, the Ministry pointed out that the Ukrainian Embassy in Senegal had published a post on Facebook to call on Senegalese volunteers and foreign nationals in Senegal to join the war against Russia, describing such acts as "illegal".

COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE pic.twitter.com/AeRPIZw3dp

— Ministère des Affaires Étrangères MAESE (@MaeseSenegal) March 3, 2022

Recruitment of volunteers, mercenaries, and other foreign fighters is illegal in Senegal and punishable by law, stressed the Senegalese Ministry.

It indicated that Pyvovarov was summoned to the Ministry to explain the published post, and after verifying its legitimacy, he was asked to take it down.

The statement read that the Senegalese Foreign Ministry strongly condemns this practice, which constitutes a flagrant violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

It also called on the Ukrainian Ambassador to stop any procedures for recruiting Senegalese or foreigners from Senegalese territory, adding that it reserves the right to take any decision based on the situation.

Senegal was one of the countries that abstained from a UN vote on a resolution condemning Russia's special military operation in Ukraine and calling on Moscow to withdraw its troops.

The western media campaign is targeting #Russia, making millions of people think Russia is isolated with the sanctions imposed mostly by the #West, but is this really the truth?#RussiaUkraine pic.twitter.com/TUvrwUdwqO

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 3, 2022