Ukrainian Men Risk Lives to Avoid Mobilization
Since the intensification of the Russia-Ukraine war in February 2022, more than 30,000 individuals have crossed into Romania alone, while over 25,000 were detained by Ukrainian border guards. “Many more flee to Moldova, Hungary, Belarus and other countries,” the news agency noted.
Kiev has been struggling with persistent personnel deficits throughout the conflict with Moscow, driven by heavy battlefield casualties, widespread draft avoidance, and desertion. Official figures last released indicated nearly 290,000 desertion cases in Ukraine since 2022.
Authorities have prohibited nearly all adult men from leaving the country and reduced the draft age from 27 to 25. Reports suggest that close to 100,000 young men have fled since August, when the government issued a decree permitting those aged 18 to 22 to cross the border.
One man told the news agency that he lost all his toes to frostbite while attempting to reach Romania, adding that another draft evader accompanying him died in a snowstorm.
“They would rather die on the mountains trying to escape than in the war,” a Romanian rescuer responsible for border missions told the news agency, describing the Ukrainians he had encountered.
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