DESERTION is starving the Ukrainian army of desperately needed manpower and crippling its battle plans at a crucial time in its war with Russia, it was reported today.

Tens of thousands of worn out Ukrainian troops have walked away from combat and front-line positions, according to soldiers, lawyers and Ukrainian officials. 

Entire units have abandoned their posts, leaving defensive lines vulnerable and accelerating territorial losses, according to military commanders and soldiers.

Some take medical leave and never return, haunted by the traumas of war and demoralised by bleak prospects for victory. Others simply refuse to obey orders, sometimes in the middle of battles.

Oleksandr Kovalenko, a Kiev-based military analyst, described the problem as “critical,” and said “this problem will only grow.”

The desertions come as the United States urged Ukrainian authorities to draft more troops, and to reduce the age of conscription to 18.

More than 100,000 soldiers have been charged under Ukraine’s desertion laws since Russia invaded in February 2022, according to the country’s General Prosecutor’s Office. 

Nearly half have gone absent without leave in the last year alone, after Kiev launched an aggressive and controversial mobilisation drive that political and military chiefs concede has largely failed.

An officer with Ukraine’s 72nd Brigade, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “It is clear that now, frankly speaking, we have already squeezed the maximum out of our people,” who noted that desertion was one of the main reasons Ukraine lost the town of Vuhledar in October.

Another deserter, also speaking anonymously, said he initially left his infantry unit with permission because he needed surgery. By the time his leave was up, he couldn’t bring himself to return.

Ukraine’s General Staff has insisted previously that soldiers are given psychological support, but it didn’t respond to questions about the toll desertions are having on the battlefield.