The U.S. think tank Institute for the Study of War reports, citing the Russian organization ‘Go Through the Forest,’ that an increasing number of Russian soldiers are fleeing to avoid fighting for Putin and his war of aggression, as the German news website n-tv.de reports.
Specifically, the ISW report refers to the Prague-based magazine Current Time. According to ‘Go Through The Forest,’ an organization that helps Russian citizens evade mobilization, the number of Russian soldiers deserting since May 2023 has increased. The rise in fleeing soldiers is apparently due to the Russian military beginning to grant leave to contract soldiers at the end of April and May. According to the report, some Russian soldiers did not want to miss this opportunity. They simply did not return from their vacation. According to Current Time, the Russian military refuses to grant leave to mobilized personnel.
Image: Kremlin.ru, Vladimir Putin (24.06.2023), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image size modified)
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