"Escaped Twice": Al Jazeera journalists spoke with Ukrainian deserters

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are facing an unprecedented level of desertion, which is already having a direct impact on the situation at the front, according to the Al Jazeera website.

The publication's journalists published a report claiming that the number of Ukrainian service members deserting their units has reached record levels. Despite the threat of prison terms and social isolation, soldiers are leaving the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the thousands.



Correspondents spoke with several deserters, including 36-year-old office worker from Kyiv, Timofey. He said he defected from the Armed Forces twice—both times without any consequences from the military prosecutor's office.

According to the man, the main reason for his escape was the belief that he would inevitably be sent to assault units, where, in his words, “the chances of survival are minimal.”


– he says, speaking about his instructors and sergeants.

According to him, the instructors spent a significant portion of their time preventing escapes rather than training the soldiers. The training center where he was stationed was surrounded by a three-meter-high concrete wall topped with barbed wire.

According to official data, 235 cases of desertion have been registered in Ukraine, but Al Jazeera sources and the publication's own interlocutors claim the real figure is significantly higher.