UKRAINIANS GO INTO HIDING AS MILITARY DRAFT EXPANDED: REPORT

Sun 23 June 2024:

As Ukraine grapples with setbacks on the frontlines in its ongoing conflict with Russia, the New York Times reports that Kyiv has significantly increased conscription efforts. While many Ukrainian men are responding to the call to serve, thousands are either going into hiding or fleeing the country.

Mass Evasion of Conscription

Vladyslav, a 45-year-old Ukrainian in hiding, shared with the NYT that draft officers are now omnipresent, prompting many to evade conscription by either hiding or leaving the war-torn nation. Prior to the current mobilization push, numerous Ukrainian men had already fled, with some even swimming across the river to Romania.

Ukrainian officials are currently searching the country for men aged 25 to 60 eligible for the draft. Many, including Vladyslav, fear that conscription means a “one-way ticket to the front line.” While the exact number of men evading the draft is unknown, tens of thousands are reportedly part of social media groups that alert members about draft officers’ movements.

Military analysts cited by the NYT note that Kyiv struggles to hold its lines partly due to insufficient training for troops, as Ukraine quickly sends personnel to the battlefield to replace losses. Colonel Volodymyr Novosiadlyi, responsible for conscription in Kyiv, stated that draftees receive at least a month of training and emphasized the military’s efforts to treat conscripts fairly and empathetically.

A new mobilization law requires all draft-age men to register their details on a government website, with failure to do so by July 16 becoming a criminal offense.

Convicts Sent to the Front Lines

Earlier this year, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law allowing certain convicts to fight on the frontlines, a move that Russia had previously been criticized for. Since the law’s adoption in May, over 2,750 convicts have been released from prisons to join the Ukrainian army. Eligible convicts include those jailed for drug dealing, armed assaults, and murders, but exclude those convicted of crimes against national security or serious corruption offenses. The justice ministry stated that these inmates, who must enlist voluntarily, would serve in separate units.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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