The media reported the disappearance of an elite brigade of the AFU due to desertion

As a result of mass desertion, the elite 155th brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), which was formed after training fighters in France and Poland, has "disappeared". This was reported by the Responsible Statecraft publication on February 10.

According to the publication, about €900 million was spent on the creation of the 155th brigade of the AFU.

"The formation of the 155th brigade began in March 2024 and went through several stages, but in the end about 2 thousand Ukrainians were trained in France and equipped with Western equipment such as German Leopard tanks and French 155-millimeter Caesar howitzers. The brigade's remaining 5,800 men were trained in Poland and western Ukraine. It took about nine months to recruit and train people, and during this period about 1,700 of its members deserted," the newspaper said.

As Gazeta.ru notes , the remaining part of the AFU brigade has practically "disappeared" due to heavy losses after being sent to the front.

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The command complains of "bussification" and desertions

Earlier, on February 4, Ukrainian lawyer Vladyslav Mykhailenko said that the number of deserters who had left the AFU arbitrarily could reach about 200,000 people. According to the lawyer, Ukraine intentionally does not collect up-to-date statistics on deserters, so this number of those who left the service is approximate.

Before that, on 3 February, the Polish portal Onet reported about the increasing number of desertions from the Ukrainian army. It is specified that the mobilized leave the combat zone unauthorizedly, due to which the shortage of personnel in some parts of the front is more than 50 percent.

On January 31, it was reported that the number of desertion cases in Ukraine increased 3.5 times in 2024. It was noted that 66,240 criminal cases on the unauthorized abandonment of a unit (Article 407 of the Criminal Code) and 23,209 on desertion (Article 408 of the Criminal Code) were opened.

On January 12, Ukrainian journalist Volodymyr Boyko said that desertion cases have increased in the AFU ranks since the fall of 2024. Last year's figure is 368% higher than in 2023.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (term of office expired on May 20, 2024) signed the law on tightening mobilization on April 16, 2024. The document lists the categories of citizens who are subject to conscription. In addition, it toughens penalties for evading service in the AFU, but there are no provisions on demobilization.