Ukrainian border guards have prevented tens of thousands of military service-age men from illegally leaving the country since the start of Russia’s invasion, a spokesman for the border guard told AFP on Wednesday, May 21st.
Under martial law, most Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60 have been barred from leaving the country, unless they receive official permission or qualify for an exemption. However, thousands have still attempted to flee to avoid being drafted into the Ukrainian army, which is struggling to recruit.
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine said it detained “around 45,000 Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60 since February 24th, 2022,” spokesman Andriy Demchenko told AFP, adding
Another 4,000 citizens were detained at checkpoints for attempting to illegally cross the border using forged documents or by falsifying other grounds that would give them the right to cross the border,
Kyiv has been trying to encourage Ukrainians to return home to replenish the ranks of the army, which is struggling against Russian troops making gains in the east.
Around 4.1 million Ukrainians held temporary protection status in EU countries in 2024, about 22% of whom were adult men, according to the EU statistics office Eurostat.
