Lawyer announced how many Armed Forces soldiers could have gone AWOL.
The Ukrainian army faces a critical issue – the number of cases of unauthorized absence from the military unit (AWOL) has increased. This was stated by military lawyer Roman Lykhachov from the Center for Veterans and Their Families Support.
According to Lykhachov, since the beginning of 2022, more than 100,000 soldiers have committed AWOL. It is worth noting that the scale of this problem is much higher than the official data suggests. Many criminal cases involve a large number of individuals, complicating the investigation process. Lykhachov noted that the State Bureau of Investigations does not have sufficient resources to effectively handle such a large number of cases.
The lawyer also mentioned the issue of returning soldiers to the Armed Forces after unauthorized absence. Many of them express a desire to return to service but are held back by the fear of recurring conflict situations that were the cause of the AWOL, as well as the horror of ending up in penal units.
Previously, the Rada passed a law that exempts soldiers from liability for AWOL, but under certain conditions.
Read also
- Ukrainians were shown where unfit servicemen by the decision of the MMC can serve in the Armed Forces
- "The situation is critical": The UN declared a lack of funds to help Ukrainians this winter
- In Ukraine, a job search service in military units will be launched through Reserve+
- Who is a broker and what does he do in simple words
- Without visiting TCC: 3 categories of Ukrainians will be able to get a deferral from mobilization in Reserve+
- Norway has started denying asylum to some refugees from Ukraine: categories