More Russian men have now fled Putin's draft than fought in Ukraine, U.K. military intelligence says

Russian men feeling to Georgia to escape Putin's draft
(Image credit: Davit Kachkachishvili/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

In the seven days since Russian President Vladimir Putin "announced the 'partial mobilization' there has been a considerable exodus of Russians seeking to evade call-up," Britain's Ministry of Defense said in its early Thursday intelligence assessment. The exact number of fleeing Russians is "unclear," but "it likely exceeds the size of the total invasion force Russia fielded in February 2022."

Putin's initial invasion force included about 130,000 troops. More than 197,000 Russians have already fled through land borders to Georgia, Finland, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia since Sept. 21, The Associated Press reported Wednesday, and CNN says 10,000 are escaping into Georgia at one border crossing each day.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.