Fleeing from the Front - Russia Grapples with Record Desertions and Asylum Requests

Russian soldiers (symbolic image) Stringer/Getty Images

British intelligence services are recording a record number of deserters from Russia, as reported by Ukrainian online newspaper “Ukrainska Pravda”. These cases include both those being prosecuted by military courts, as well as asylum requests by Russian citizens abroad.

The findings are based on data from Mediazona, an independent Russian media portal. According to this, the Russian military courts convicted a record number of 64 service members for desertion in March.

Since the “partial” mobilization in September 2022, the total number of cases has amounted to 7,400, with the majority of cases being recorded in the Moscow Oblast with 496.

Return to the front as punishment

“Many of the tracked down soldiers who are put on trial by military courts receive probationary sentences, are sent back to their units, and to the front lines,” quotes the report of the British defense intelligence agency.

At the same time, the intelligence service points out that the number of asylum requests by Russian citizens seeking to avoid military service has reached a peak in Western countries. In particular, soldiers who were forcibly drafted during the “partial” mobilization in September 2022 are reportedly required to stay in military service indefinitely, without any prospect of being discharged.