A farewell to Putin's regime: Russian soldiers who deserted share their experiences

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

Voxeurop

Russian soldiers face coercion and choose exile; a media project aids desertion.

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[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

A 28-year-old Russian army lieutenant named Georgy, who is gay, fled the Russian army after facing increasing pressure, discrimination, and realizing the war’s official narratives were false. His attempts to resign were blocked, and he was threatened with a fabricated criminal case. Following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Georgy became disillusioned, leading him to desert and eventually seek asylum in France with his partner, Sergey. Political scientist Anna Colin-Lebedev discusses the forced enlistment of young conscripts, noting how the military has changed its recruitment tactics. Georgy and another former soldier, Aleksandr, co-founded a media project, “A Farewell To Arms,” to counter state propaganda by sharing the stories of those who desert and encouraging others to leave. The text also provides context on Russian military recruitment, the dangers faced by defectors, and the difficulty in verifying official statistics regarding military strength and desertion rates.

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