08/23/2024

Border Guards Search for Draft Evaders on a River Between the EU and Ukraine

The Ukrainian military is managing troop shortages through mass conscription

A few months ago, Vitalii Barelin was in eastern Ukraine, using drones to hunt Russian troops invading his homeland. Now the 25-year-old soldier is on a river in the west, chasing his own countrymen: Ukrainians trying to escape conscription.

"They think they are smarter than you because you fought in the war, and they're running away," he said.

With Russia's war on Ukraine now in its third year, the Ukrainian military is managing troop shortages through the mass conscription of men ages 25-60. Though draft-age men are banned from leaving the country, tens of thousands have fled since the beginning of the war in February 2022, according to the border authorities of neighboring countries.

Please select this link to read the complete article from NPR.