- Russian independent news Mediazona reports that Russian courts received 20,538 cases of service personnel absent without leave (AWOL), desertion or refused orders. These cases cover the period from the start of the war in February 2022 to late May 2025. The majority of these cases, 18,159, or 88.4% were for AWOL, an offense under 337 of the Criminal Code, which now carries a 10 year prison sentence. Of these cases, 86.2% or 17,721 received a prosecution.
- There are a range of factors that can lead a soldier to desert. Brutal discipline in the Russian Armed Forces, poor medical treatment for injured soldiers and inadequate military training all likely contribute to a Russian service personnel going AWOL. A contract soldier could arrive at the front lines from within 14 days of signing a contract and receive only 5 days of relevant military training.
- This all runs counter to the official narrative that the Russian leadership values the military service of those who fight in Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine. It is a realistic possibility that those prosecuted could commute their sentence by serving in the Russian Storm-Z convict assault units.