Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees appears to be conflating deserters with draft dodgers — and somehow concluding that neither of the two are at risk of repressions in Russia.
According to a recent piece by Meduza.io:
“Georgy Avaliani, a 47-year-old father of three, was mobilized into the Russian army in the fall of 2022. He fled the front line as soon as he was deployed, only to be arrested, held in a “torture basement,” and sent back to his unit. It took two more attempts for him to successfully escape abroad. Under pressure from Russia’s military police, his wife and children soon followed. But although Avaliani is still on Russia’s federal wanted list, Germany’s migration office rejected his family’s application for political asylum. According to a new report by the independent outlet Mediazona, this is part of a broader trend. (…) Moreover, according to the outlet, German authorities appear to be issuing cookie-cutter rejection letters, putting those seeking asylum at risk of deportation to Russia.”
You can read the full piece here.
This is just another such case of bureacratic madness in the western world.
In 2025 we wrote about a 21-year-old Daniil Mukhametov, who fled Russia to avoid forced military service. Pursued by Russian police, he bought a ticket on the Kaliningrad train that transits Lithuania, used keys purchased online to open a carriage, and jumped from a moving train. He then travelled via Tallinn to Finland, where he sought asylum. He found himself at risk of deportation, by the Finnish authorities, which could have resulted in him being evicted to Russia, and sent to the frontlines or killed by the regime.
A similar insanity is occuring in America, where ICE is deporting asylum seekers into the arms of Putin’s secret police.
It is senseless that Europe would even consider supplying Putin with a fresh soldier for his war-waging. Every conscript who never reaches Russia’s front is one less body for Putin’s war, one more Ukrainian spared, fewer bullets tearing into Ukrainian lines, fewer civilians suffering, and a war machine that is just a little more starved of fuel.
Draft evasion is a clear moral duty for every Russian, and Europe’s role in making that duty nearly impossible to fulfil is a disgrace. It is plainly in the EU’s interest to oppose Russian conscription. Russian draft dodgers and conscription saboteurs, such as those setting enlistment offices ablaze, are among our closest allies.
