“A staggeringly high number.” This is not talked about much in Kiev

“Facing every possible shortage, tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, exhausted and deprived of strength, fled the battlefield and front line positions,” writes the Associated Press. According to reports from military commanders, entire units abandoned their positions, leaving the defensive lines without soldiers and thus accelerating territorial losses.

Some take sick leave and never return, haunted by war trauma and fed by bleak prospects of the end of the war. Others clash with commanders and refuse to follow orders, sometimes during firefights.

Oleksandr Kovalenko, a military analyst from Kiev, estimates that the problem of desertion “has become critical.” And he adds that it will only increase. The agency notes that while Moscow is also struggling with desertions, the deserting Ukrainians “have exposed deep-seated problems plaguing their military, as well as Kiev's handling of the war, from faulty mobilization to the overextension and attrition of units on the front line.” .

The Associated Press reports the account of two deserters. Only one of them agreed to speak under his name. “To be honest, we have already squeezed the maximum out of our people,” says an officer from the 72nd Brigade. He points out that desertion was one of the main reasons why in October Ukraine lost control over the town of Vuhledar in Donbas.

According to information from the Ukrainian prosecutor's office, since February 24, 2022, i.e. since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, over one hundred thousand soldiers have been accused of desertion. Nearly half of them voluntarily left the army over the past year, after Kiev launched a mobilization that government officials and military commanders admit was largely unsuccessful.

“This is a staggeringly high number, considering that it was estimated that 300,000 Ukrainian soldiers were involved in the fighting before the mobilization campaign began. And the actual number of deserters may be much higher. One official familiar with military matters estimated that this may be be up to 200,000,” writes the Associated Press.

“Many deserters, after receiving medical leave, do not return to the front. Tired of the constant war, they are mentally and emotionally scarred. They feel guilty that they cannot muster the will to fight, they are angry at the way the war is being fought and frustrated that it seems unwinnable.” “- adds the agency. “Silence about a huge problem only harms our country,” said Serhiy Gnezdilov, one of the few soldiers who spoke publicly about his decision to desert.

Another deserter, who asked not to be named, says he still has nightmares about dying comrades in arms.

“The best way to explain it is to imagine that you are sitting under fire and from their (Russian – ed.) side 50 bullets are flying at you and only one from ours. Then you see your friends being torn to pieces and you realize that at any moment it could be you,” he says, quoted by the agency. “Meanwhile, the guys (Ukrainian soldiers – ed.) 10 kilometers away give an order on the radio: Come, get ready (for further fighting – ed.). Everything will be fine,” he adds.

The Associated Press writes that the defection “has turned Kiev's military plans into dust that slips through the fingers of military commanders.” He writes that this problem may put Kiev in a very unfavorable situation in the context of possible future ceasefire talks.

The agency learned of cases in which defense lines were seriously breached because entire units disobeyed orders and abandoned their positions. “Due to the lack of political will and mismanagement of troops, especially in the infantry, we are certainly not moving towards a proper defense of the territories we currently control,” Gnezdilov claims.

In September, the Ukrainian military reported a shortage of four thousand soldiers at the front, mainly due to deaths, injuries and desertions. Most of the deserters were among recent recruits.

The head of the legal service of one of the Ukrainian brigades, who is responsible for examining desertion cases and forwarding them to law enforcement agencies, told the AP that he has encountered many such situations.

“The most important thing is that they leave combat positions during an exchange of fire, and because of this, their comrades die. We had several situations when entire units, both small and large, escaped. They exposed their flanks, and the enemy came to these flanks and killed them comrades in arms because those who were in position did not know that no one else was nearby,” the official said.

“For this reason, Vuhledar, a hilltop town that Ukraine had defended for two years, was lost within a few weeks in October,” said an officer of the 72nd Brigade, who was among the last to withdraw.

READ ALSO: The Russians entered the city, which had been defended for over two years

Ukrainian lawyers interviewed by AP say that when soldiers are indicted, it is difficult to defend them. Defense attorneys focus on their clients' mental state at the time of their escape. “People cannot cope mentally with the situation they are in and do not receive psychological help,” says lawyer Tatiana Ivanova.

But he adds that soldiers acquitted of desertion for psychological reasons set a “dangerous precedent.” – Then everyone can be acquitted – he admits.