As the Russia-Ukraine war continues to gain momentum, Kyiv faces a big threat from within its own country. According to the Associated Press, desertion is severely depleting the Ukrainian military's manpower.
This comes at a critical point in the ongoing war with Russia as Vladimir Putin threatened to target decision-making centers in Ukraine's capital using the country's newly developed ballistic missile. This crisis could also place Kyiv at a significant disadvantage during any potential ceasefire negotiations.
"We do not rule out the use of Oreshnik against the military, military-industrial facilities or decision-making centers, including in Kyiv," Putin said at a press conference in Kazakhstan on Thursday. He said the weapon was "comparable in strength to a nuclear strike" if used several times on one location.
"The kinetic impact is powerful, like a meteorite falling," Putin said. "We know in history what meteorites have fallen where, and what the consequences were. Sometimes it was enough for whole lakes to form."
Amidst extreme shortages, tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers—exhausted and demoralized—have deserted their front-line positions, slipping into anonymity, as reported by soldiers, legal experts, and Ukrainian officials, the AP reported Friday. Entire units have fled their posts, weakening defensive lines and contributing to further territorial losses, according to military leaders and personnel.
Some troops take medical leave and never return, burdened by the psychological scars of war and disheartened by grim chances of victory. Others engage in conflicts with commanders, refusing to follow orders, even during active combat.
"This problem is critical," said Oleksandr Kovalenko, a Kyiv-based military analyst, told AP. "This is the third year of war, and this problem will only grow."
Since Russia's invasion in February 2022, more than 100,000 soldiers have been charged under Ukraine's desertion laws, according to the General Prosecutor's Office. Nearly half of these desertions have occurred in the past year, following Kyiv's aggressive and controversial mobilization effort, which government officials and military commanders admit has largely been ineffective.
Meanwhile, Russia launched over 100 drones at Ukraine overnight into Friday, resulting in one fatality and injuring eight others, Agence France Presse reported, citing officials. This drone attack followed a missile strike the previous day, in which approximately 90 missiles were fired at Ukraine, leaving over a million people without power.
