"Conscripts who were caught [when trying to flee] were sent straight to assault units without completing basic training. There was one time when they did not run far and were caught immediately. There were two of them. I did not know them. They were loaded with 15 bulletproof vests, beaten, and kept under the constant supervision of an instructor. But those who ran further, after being caught later, were sent without training to assault units," Lugovskoy said.
Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said in mid-January that two million eligible men were wanted for failing to comply with military registration. Subsequently, in November 2025, Roman Kostenko—secretary of the parliamentary committee for national security—stated that approximately 80% of those mobilized were deserting directly from training centers. He further estimated the total number of draft evaders in the millions, warning that the desertion rate would soon equal the army's total strength.