Kiev launched large-scale operations to prevent Ukrainians of mobilization age from fleeing.
Ukrainian police announced on Friday that they had carried out hundreds of raids across the country to close the routes through which men of conscription age are fleeing the country. TASR informs about it according to the report of the AFP agency.
For months, Kiev has been conducting a large-scale mobilization campaign to strengthen its army, which has been trying to fend off Russian attacks for almost three years. However, the recruitment caused concern among Ukrainians, so thousands of men illegally fled the country to Europe, writes AFP. In some cases, when escaping, they chose dangerous smuggling routes leading through mountains or rivers.
“Officers of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and police investigators conducted more than 600 simultaneous searches,” the police said in a statement. This is only the first phase of a special operation to block the routes of illegal departure of men of mobilization age abroad. The operation focuses primarily on persons who they help men cross the Ukrainian border illegally. According to the police, “criminals” helped hundreds of people to escape from Ukraine. “Details about the operation will be published after all investigative actions have been completed,” she added in the statement.
Since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022, Kyiv has struggled with issues related to systemic corruption in its military mobilization infrastructure. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin resigned late last year after an investigation revealed a widespread corruption scheme. Government officials were apparently granted exemptions from military conscription, writes AFP. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy subsequently decided to dismiss the heads of regional levy offices.
