Visas to Russian defectors to allow them to stay in Europe. The decision, the first of its kind in the European Union, belongs to France. Human rights groups rejoice, hoping that other countries in the bloc will follow Paris’ example. According to them, it would be a way out for Russian soldiers who want to stop fighting in Ukraine, but risk ten years in prison if captured by Moscow.
Escaping the fighting in Ukraine is particularly difficult, but some soldiers succeed. The problem, however, is managing to remain in countries considered “safe”, outside the Kremlin’s sphere of influence. In the last few months, six soldiers have made it, arriving in France after passing through Kazakhstan. Now comes the historic decision from the Transalpine government which could allow them to sleep more peacefully.
Without foreign documents or passports, the six Russian soldiers who abandoned Moscow’s troops arrived separately on French territory. “When I landed in France, it was the first time I could breathe deeply. I felt a sense of calm and freedom… the worst was behind me,” he told the British newspaper The Guardian Alexander, a former Russian contract soldier. His desertion dates back to the summer of 2023. And this is not an isolated case.
Thousands of Russian deserters abandon the front
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, around 7,400 soldiers have been tried by military courts for leaving the army without permission. According to the Russian independent news site Mediazonethe number of registered cases increases every month. However, it is hypothesized that several tens of thousands of men opted for desertion. “This case in France is really important to show soldiers that they have options other than going to Ukraine and killing people there,” said Anastasia Burakova, founder of The Ark, an organization that supports Russians who oppose to the war in Ukraine both within Russia and in exile.
Ten years in prison for Russian defectors
The option of offering asylum to draft dodgers and deserters from the Russian army has been examined by the European Union as a whole, but Brussels has never adopted an official and unambiguous decision in this sense. “This is the first time that an EU country has let in a group of defectors who did not have travel documents or foreign passports,” said Ivan Chuviliaev, spokesperson for Go By The Forest, an organization dedicated to supporting the soldiers. Russians who decide to avoid fighting against Ukraine.
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The group had declared a Mediazone that 30 percent of the 520 soldiers he helped defect were hiding in Russia, while the remainder had fled abroad. Under Russian law, wartime desertion is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The maximum punishment was strengthened by President Vladimir Putin after the conflict against Kiev began. For those who are discovered, conditions would be very bad even before prison. There have been reports from Ukraine of Russian soldiers locked in pits and cellars for days on end by their superiors after attempting to escape.
Russian defectors extradited from former Soviet countries
For those who manage to leave Russia, options are limited. Serving troops do not have their passports. This means that defectors can only travel to former Soviet countries that do not require documents, such as Armenia, Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan. Once they get there they cannot consider themselves safe. “It’s really difficult to find a job and have an income,” Burakova said. “They can’t have any legal status. They can’t leave the country. And also, they’re at high risk of being kidnapped,” The Ark founder highlighted.
The organization manages to help them reach countries in the Soviet sphere, but cannot guarantee their safety. For example, Russian defector Dmitri Sedrakov, who was illegally captured by Russian forces in Armenia in December 2023 and returned to Russia, fared badly. There have also been similar extraditions from Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
Not even in Europe, however, Russian defectors can remain calm. This is demonstrated by the case of Maksim Kuzminov, a young Russian pilot who defected last summer, and who was found dead in Spain in mid-February 2024, most likely at the hands of a killer hired by Moscow. On February 13 his body was found in Villajoyosa, near Alicante, where he lived incognito. A gunshot killed him.
After the visa, the request for political asylum for deserters
The six soldiers who were granted visas intend to apply for political asylum in France. Obtaining the temporary visas required lengthy discussions with human rights groups to secure. Activists had to ensure that the ex-servicemen did not pose a security risk and that they were sincerely against the war in Ukraine. “We can establish that people did not take part in war crimes, or sometimes that they were simply stationed at military posts in Russia, not in the occupied territories of Ukraine,” Burakova said.
Over the past two years, the EU has tightened its guidelines on granting visas to Russian citizens, while many countries have suspended visas for Russians altogether. The only exception: Viktor Orban’s Hungary which recently facilitated the granting of visas. The Ark activists hope that the French decision to grant visas to defectors is a sign of hope for other Russian soldiers, who intend to abandon the army and a signal to speed up the peace process.