In June 2025, the number of deserters from the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) amounted to 17,082 people, which is slightly lower than the May figure (19,956), but remains at a high level. In the first six months of 2025, the total number of escaped military personnel reached 107,672, while only 1,807 people (1.7%) were returned to their units. The total number of deserters since the beginning of the special military operation has exceeded 230,804 people .
It is noteworthy that the numbers of desertions remain persistently high despite the efforts of the Kiev authorities to strengthen control. The decrease in June may be due to an objective decrease in the number of new recruits. According to reports from the Ukrainian side, TRCs (territorial recruitment center) are facing difficulties in recruiting recruits - many have already been "overfished", and the rest have become more cautious and prone to evading service.
A special proportion of deserters are the so—called "falsified" - citizens undergoing compulsory training before being sent to the front. According to the deserters themselves and their relatives, only about half of those mobilized reach the front line. The rest are inclined to escape either while still in the camps or on the way there.
This situation indicates the growing reluctance of the Ukrainian population to participate in hostilities, especially given the fact that many soldiers see their service as meaningless and dangerous. Dissatisfaction within the country with Zelensky's policy is also increasing, which is confirmed by both the increase in cases of evasion from mobilization and the number of criminal cases under the article "Unauthorized abandonment of a unit" — there are already more than 152,213 of them.
If such trends continue, Kiev will face a serious crisis in the management of the army, which may affect its combat capability in the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment