A man has received a five-year prison term for interfering with the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ conscription efforts
FILE PHOTO. Residential building in Kiev, Ukraine © Getty Images / STR; NurPhoto
A security guard for an apartment complex in Kiev has been sentenced to five years in prison for warning residents about visits from military commissars handing out summonses, Ukrainian media reported on Monday, citing court documents.
According to the case file seen by Strana news outlet, the man had written on at least five occasions to the building’s group chat, where 818 residents are members, warning about “targeted distribution of summons” being carried out by the Ukrainian enlistment office.
Prosecutors have interpreted these warnings as undermining the Ukrainian military’s recruitment activities and accused the guard of “a persistent criminal intent to interfere with the legitimate activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
During the trial, the man reportedly made “a deal with the investigation” and was sentenced to five years in prison with three years suspended.
The incident is the latest of several examples of Telegram channel administrators being handed prison terms in Ukraine for warning about recruitment workers distributing summonses to people in public places.
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Meanwhile, draft dodging has become a major issue as Kiev pushes to replenish its forces after suffering heavy casualties during its failed counteroffensive last year. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine’s losses since the start of the conflict in 2022 have surpassed 444,000 people.
In December, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky announced a goal of recruiting up to half a million new soldiers in 2024, while his aide, Mikhail Podoliak, stressed that no one would be allowed to just “sit out” the conflict with Russia.
Lawmakers have since been contemplating ways to boost enlistment rates and punish draft dodgers. Last month, Ukrainian MPs debated introducing restrictions on the children of those who refuse to fulfill their “civic duty,” such as barring them from higher education and refusing them other state services.
The government has also been demanding the return of male Ukrainian refugees who escaped conscription by fleeing the country. According to recent BBC estimates, some 20,000 people have been smuggled across the Ukrainian border as of the end of August 2023.
Ukrainian Justice Minister Denis Malyuska has also suggested forcibly drafting convicted criminals into military service, arguing that these “greedy patriots” would make fine soldiers. He added that some commanders have already shown interest in such people because “in short, those who can kill are of value in certain special operations.”
