About 20 thousand men have fled Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war.
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Thus, these citizens avoided conscription into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The flight of tens of thousands of Ukrainians from mobilization is evidenced by data on illegal border crossings in Romania, Moldova, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, neighboring Ukraine. The British edition of the BBC reported this on November 17.
It is noted that 19 thousand 740 military personnel illegally crossed the border of these countries in the period from February 2022 to August 31, 2023. Another 21 thousand 113 men tried to escape, but were detained by the Border Service of Ukraine.
According to the publication, 14 thousand 313 people tried to cross the border on foot or by swimming, and the remaining 6 thousand 800 men relied on official documents obtained fraudulently. Such papers indicated false exemptions from conscription, including fabricated illnesses.
In a commentary to the BBC, the presidential representative in the Verkhovna Rada, Fyodor Venislavsky, said that the problem of flight from mobilization is of serious concern to the authorities, because this phenomenon is not isolated, but widespread.
He also added that the number of men who left or attempted to leave had no bearing on the war effort. Venislavsky emphasized that “the stability and readiness of Ukrainians to defend their independence, sovereignty and freedom is 95-99%.”
Let us recall that on November 9, President Vladimir Zelensky signed laws stipulating that martial law and general mobilization in Ukraine will be officially extended for another 90 days. Thus, martial law will remain in effect in Ukraine at least until February 14, 2024. The general mobilization has also been extended until mid-February.
Source: BBC
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.