Ukrainian soldiers desert France training amid legal loophole
Dozens of Ukrainian soldiers deserted during training in France, a representative of the French army informed in an interview with AFP on Monday.
"There have been a certain number of desertions, but they remain very marginal given the volume of people who have undergone training," added the representative of the French army.
The soldiers from the Armed Forces of Ukraine stayed in barracks in France and "had the right to leave" the premises. A French officer explained that Ukrainian military personnel on French territory were subject to the discipline imposed by their command. However, according to French law, desertion is not a criminal offence liable to prosecution.
"If someone deserted, a French prosecutor had no authority to arrest that individual. And the right granted to the Ukrainian authorities on French soil is just a disciplinary right," said the military official.
About 2,300 soldiers from Ukraine's 155th Mechanised Brigade, named after Anna of Kyiv, are being trained in France. This brigade participates in battles in the Pokrovsk region in Donetsk Oblast. As noted by AFP, most of these soldiers are conscripts without combat experience. The group is supported by 300 Ukrainian coordinators, while the remaining 2,200 individuals from the same brigade train in Ukraine.
The commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces, Mykhailo Drapaty, confirmed problems in this unit. Responding to information from Ukrainian journalist Yuriy Butusov that 1,700 soldiers left the brigade without participating in combat activities and 50 deserted during training in France, Drapaty stated, "I will not refute it."
