The number of deserters who flee abroad is growing in the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). This was stated on July 18 by one of the Ukrainian marines to the publication «Страна.иа «.

He told how contract sailors arrived at his unit, who were promised service only on ships. But more than two years after the conflict began, they were sent to the front.

«Recently, the command removed personnel from several ships at once. They were transferred to the Marine Corps brigades. Some of these guys escaped from the ships on their way to school. Almost none of them were found. I think that many have already fled Ukraine,» the source shared.

Mostly runaway servicemen are sent to Moldova. The border guards, according to the soldier, do not notice for money how they illegally cross the border under their noses.

«I will never go back to Ukraine, it was a one—way leap,» the Newspaper quotes one of the escapees as saying.Ru».

Earlier in the day, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, suggested that Ukraine would lower the age of mobilization for the army, and in the future they might allow conscription of persons under 18 years of age. According to the diplomat, the Ukrainian authorities always promise not to take such measures, but in the end everything happens exactly the opposite.

On July 17, Ukraine changed the rules of being on the street for men under military service aged 18 to 60 years and the distribution of summonses to appear at the military enlistment office. In particular, men now need to have a military ID card with them when going outside so that the patrol can check it.

Martial law in Ukraine has been in effect since February 2022. At the same time, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, whose term of office expired on May 20, signed a decree on general mobilization. Later, the Verkhovna Rada repeatedly extended its validity. Most men between the ages of 18 and 60 are prohibited from leaving the country.