"I don't care that you're 20 years old! Even if you die here!" How Russia is luring Ukrainian youth into the army
Occupation authorities of the Russian Federation declare that they are not sending recruits to the front. At the same time, young people aged 18 to 20 from the occupied Ukrainian territories are encouraged to sign as many contracts as possible, with the argument - "there are greater chances of survival". In addition, there are cases where conscripts find themselves in war: local residents tell Donbas Realii about them, and Russian liberal media already know about them directly on the territory of the Russian Federation. In any case, men aged 18 to 20 who have completed their military service are in a "danger zone", because serving in the military is already a fact that you know military basics, so mobilization for such can come immediately after returning from military service. What are the dangers of Russian military service for young Ukrainians from occupied cities and villages, writes Donbas Realii (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty project).
As reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, this year men aged 18 to 30 will be called up for conscription. They say recruits will be sent to exchange points on the territory of Russia, but not to units located in the occupied territories of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions. Instead, they may be sent to the occupied Crimea and Russian Belgorod, where they often "land".
The Russian military draft for boys from the occupied territories of Ukraine
Anton is a student from the occupied Alchevsk. He is 20 years old. This year, too, the boy was forced to register. He says he was pressured even at the institute, and his parents were "congratulated on the job." However, the military committee reassured them again - "this is the usual course for a young fighter," but the boy does not believe it.
"My brother served in the military last year. He was promised a year of training, but it turned out that within a few months he was on the border of the occupied region of Luhansk and the Kharkiv region. Daily shelling and constant fighting are what taught him about combat, not military service," says Anton.
Unlike his brother, Anton has a "break" because he is studying at university. However, he says, not even that is a guarantee of safety.
"Tomorrow, you can simply be 'selected' at the meeting, because the 'power structures' have come to the university and explained that they need new volunteers," says Anton.
Sergiy from the occupied Krasnodon (Sorokino after decommunization - ed.) also studies at the institute in Luhansk. He says that several classmates who did not pass the winter semester received a "lucky ticket" to the army. They are now serving in the Belgorod region, but they fear they will be transferred to the "zero line." Even where they are now is dangerous.
„They dig trenches there. And this is not an isolated case... on the Russian border territories. These regions are often attacked by drones. And nobody teaches boys how to fight and survive - they just stand and dig. But if mothers of boys in Russia somehow make a fuss, no one will listen to us," says Sergiy.
In November 2022, Afanasiy Podaev, a Russian soldier from the Tyumen region, died from a shrapnel wound. The parents were sure their son wasn't serving in Ukraine; it later turned out he was serving in the Belgorod region, right on the border. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation denies all this, and Russian lawyers have rejected the lawsuit of the deceased's parents, saying that the truth will not be revealed.
"Do you not want to be cannon fodder? Sign the contract."
According to Anton and Sergiy, higher education institutions in the occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions have become real recruitment bases for Russia. Flyers appear at universities urging people to sign contracts. Such "benefits" include: official accommodation or rental allowance, the opportunity to buy your own home, free examination/treatment/rehabilitation, life and health insurance, two-week paid vacation at least once every six months.
"We joked that it looked like motivation - if you don't study, you go to the army. Now it's like the norm - there's a schedule hanging, and next to it, a big poster 'Service by contract in the armed forces of Russia.' Like in a movie, 'Which pill will you choose, Neo?'" says Sergiy.
He adds that similar posts are often seen in student groups on social media.
Furthermore, the military is specifically located near universities to "recruit" young people.
"They approach boys during breaks or after lectures, asking for lighters/cigarettes. And then - from word to word, they tell you what a great future you will have if you join the fight. They say that if I sign the contract myself and am not mobilized, then I have a better chance of surviving. They said that contract soldiers in the Russian army are treated with respect, valued, and protected. And they don't regret the mobilized ones," says Anton.
"The hunt for young people to sign contracts" starts as early as the 11th grade, says Anastasia - the mother of a future high school graduate. In recent months, schools have been constantly reminding about the mandatory registration for military service for citizens who have turned 17. Additionally, there are often meetings with "war heroes" who talk about "how important and prestigious it is to defend the homeland from Nazis."
"At the meeting with the army, children were asked what they can do, what they like about the army. It's like there's no pressure, it's a normal conversation, but my son says, 'When adults in military uniforms ask you if you shoot well, it's alarming'," says Anastasia.
In the spring of 2023, the State Duma allowed the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation to conclude contracts with recruits who have turned 18 immediately after completing their education. Before that, the law provided that contract service could be completed after completing university or technical school or after three months of service by draft.
According to information from the Russian BBC service and "Mediazone," on January 12, 2024, at least 53 Russian contract soldiers aged 18 to 19 and 84 recruits died in the war in Ukraine.
According to Anastasia, children from poor families fall into the traps of the "golden mountains" promised in the contract.
"A neighbor signed a contract. He just turned 18. He's from a large family, he was the youngest. As often happens, he applied himself, wants to be independent and self-sufficient. The parents did not refuse. They buried him within a few months," says Anastasia.
In Russia, they are so interested in recruiting especially for contract service that they have introduced a simplified procedure for medical examination specifically for this category. Previously, it was necessary to pass a military medical examination at the military headquarters in the place of residence, and then at the regional level, now only the first part is sufficient. Therefore, according to the Russian authorities, the process of recruiting volunteers for contract service should be simplified and accelerated. People from Lugansk joke: they have always had such a system.
"You come and say, 'I want a contract.' They don't even check you, they just ask, 'So what? Should I write that I'm healthy?' It might be different on other occupied territories, but here it's according to Soviet standards. They said, 'We need 20 people with contracts,' then we have to meet this quota, or even better, exceed it. After all, it's the Stakhanov region," says Ihor, a resident of Lugansk.
"Have you served your term? They'll call at any time."
"After serving in the military, you're still a hostage," says Ihor.
He's serving his term. He says he came to update his information in the military and was then engaged. Now he's undergoing the "Young Fighters Course." It's happening in the occupied Luhansk region (as we noticed, the Kremlin promises it's temporary only on the territory of Russia). Besides him, there are five to seven students who don't want to argue. They convince themselves that after military service, they'll have some privileges - at least they won't be immediately called into combat.
"It's unclear what will happen with the summonses and who will be called from November 1st. For now, no one understands how the system announced by the Russian authorities will function. We were told: 'Have you served your term? That's it. They'll call at any moment,'" says Ihor.
He adds: now they're given more than usual tasks during military service, but not to learn something, but to encourage them once again to sign contracts.
"I don't care that you're 20 years old! Even if you die here!" shouted (Russian officer - ed.), when I said it's really hard for me to pass this 'test,' and they can't send me to the front because I'm only 20," recalls Ihor.
The boy adds that Russian officers treat recruits from the occupied areas as a resource that won't be wasted.