Russian Soldiers Desert Amid Ukraine Conflict, Aided by Anti-War Group

Russian soldiers involved in the conflict in Ukraine are increasingly deserting their positions, according to reports. The group Idite Lesom has assisted at least 3,000 such deserters since 2022, including helping them evade authorities or leave Russia.

Independent estimates suggest higher numbers of desertions within the Russian military. Oleg, a 24-year-old from Ufa, said he believed he was signing up for a security guard position at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in occupied Ukraine, with a salary of 200,000 rubles ($2,660).

He signed a contract in December at a conscription office in Ryazan, but later discovered it committed him to serve as a drone pilot. Oleg stated he signed without fully reading the document and was ignored when complaining about the enlistment, despite a schizophrenia diagnosis that should have barred him from handling weapons.

Idite Lesom, which means 'go through the forest' idiomatically, vets deserters by checking their documents and service details. The group's spokesman, Ivan Chuvilyaev, said Russia's mobilization efforts have evolved, including recruiting through false promises of safe jobs or targeting economic migrants, students, and arrested individuals.

Sixty percent of assisted deserters remain in Russia, living off the grid by avoiding bank cards and SIM cards. Oleg reported being trained in Kovrov, where he faced mistreatment and failed a drone pilot test, leading to reassignment as a driver. By March, he was in Voronezh near the Ukraine border and experienced severe distress, including self-harm.

He fled to Moscow, then Belgorod, and attempted to cross into Georgia but was barred from leaving Russia.

Following instructions from Idite Lesom, Oleg traveled to Minsk in Belarus and flew to Yerevan, Armenia, before relocating to another country. He is awaiting a humanitarian visa to an EU nation. Russian authorities did not respond to requests for comment on these accounts.

Ukraine faces a higher rate of desertions, with Defence Minister Mykhailo Fyodorov stating in January that more than 200,000 soldiers, or over 20 percent of active servicemen, have gone AWOL or deserted, and more than two million are evading the draft.

Nikolay Mitrokhin of Germany’s Bremen University said this represents a real crisis for Ukrainian forces, unlike for Russia, and linked it to issues like corrupt conscription and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's handling of the system. Deserters from Ukraine cite mistreatment, poor conditions, and slow rotations.

In mid-April, officers of the 14th Special Mechanised Brigade were fired after photos emerged of emaciated soldiers near Kupiansk who had been in positions for a year, relying on melted snow and infrequent drone-delivered food. Olena, a 29-year-old mother, said her husband Arseny deserted in February after eight months of service following the death of a friend in what she described as a suicidal mission.

She stated he left to avoid being the next to die.