Russia and War: Mercenaries, Heroes and Deserters

"I also received an order, but I didn't carry it out," Igor Shchetko tells DW. The former soldier in Russia's Strategic Missile Forces wonders why others can't do the same.

After the start of the aggression against Ukraine, he deserted, convinced that there was no other way out of the army. Incidentally, a year before the invasion began, Shchetko had agreed to a two-year military service contract.

His decision was also influenced by the suicide of a recruit in his unit – it was Ščetko who found his body. After that, he ended up in a psychiatric ward of a hospital, where he tried to obtain a discharge from the army on health grounds.

Instead, he was ordered to be transferred to an assault brigade. "When I found out that I would have to go to the war zone, it was clear to me that under no circumstances would I participate in the war," Shchetko told DW.

A few days later, he fled Russia to Armenia, and from there to the European Union.

Desertion and refusal to fight

Human rights activist Sergei Krivenko has been advocating for the rights of military personnel for years. He estimates that around 60.000 Russian soldiers have deserted their units or refused to participate in combat operations.

It's not just about "classic" desertions. There are also cases in which soldiers hide in Russia or try to get a medical certificate that they are unfit for service.

According to Krivenko, more than 20.000 criminal cases have already been opened in Russia for absenteeism, desertion and refusal to participate in combat. Refusal to participate in combat is considered a criminal offense.

Igor Ščetko says that if extradited to Russia, he would face 15 years in prison or being sent to the battlefield.

The Russian army is not just made up of "cannon fodder"

According to Sergei Krivenko, the Russian army has been attracting new soldiers mainly through lucrative contracts since 2023. But not all of them are volunteers.

Among professional soldiers who have committed to military service for a certain period of time are prisoners, migrants, debtors, conscripts, and residents of economically weaker regions who often choose military service due to financial problems or lack of other options.

At the same time, the state is intensifying paramilitary training in schools and universities through "patriotic" programs.

Observers, however, emphasize that the Russian army should not be viewed simply as a group of random passers-by who go to the front for money or other reasons.

A representative of the Russian Volunteer Corps, who fought on the Ukrainian side under the war name Kasper, recalls that the Russian army, in addition to "cannon fodder", also includes well-trained and motivated units.

Injuries or captivity as the only “way out”

Anthropologist Aleksandra Arkhipova speaks about the daily climate of violence. Together with her colleagues, she collected testimonies from Russian soldiers, deserters, and their families.

One of the results of their work is a “war dictionary” that contains battlefield jargon and reflects life within the Russian army. According to Arkhipova, these words are mostly related to control, punishment and survival.

For example, the term “birdhouse” refers to drone operators who monitor their own comrades and can shoot at those who try to retreat.

The word “pit” refers to makeshift places for illegal detention and punishment, while the term “quarantine” refers to bases where Russian soldiers returned from Ukrainian captivity are interrogated by the domestic security service, the FSB, before being sent back to the battlefield. “There is no going back home,” Arkhipova emphasizes.

According to her, during the war years, returning from the army to civilian life became increasingly difficult. Many soldiers today see the "only way out" in serious injury, capture, desertion or, in the worst case, death.

In addition, a kind of “black market survival system” has developed within the military. According to Arkhipova, soldiers pay thousands of dollars to get leave, be transferred from the battlefield, or avoid serving in assault groups. They also buy medical certificates and bribe commanders to temporarily leave their units.

Arkhipova particularly emphasizes that the attitude towards human life within the military has changed. Many interviewees described the front as a place where people are not viewed as individuals, but primarily as expendable resources.

Participation in war brings benefits

The war is also changing Russian society. According to journalist Alexei Tupitsin, the war has gradually become a part of everyday life, and for some families, a source of income.

When mobilization began, Tupicin and his colleagues organized chat groups for the wives of mobilized soldiers and the soldiers themselves. According to his observations, the anonymous conversations were initially marked by fear and a desire for family members to return home.

But over time, the war has become a source of stable income for many families. "The wives of mobilized soldiers are now in a way middle class," says the journalist. Families are paying off loans, buying cars and expensive furniture.

Tupicin warns that in some schools, children of war veterans are fed separately from other children. Children of soldiers receive extra sweets and other meals and are treated preferentially.

A distant relationship between society

While the state tries to glorify war veterans returning home, many people in everyday life keep their distance. This is especially true of former prisoners who fought in private military companies and assault brigades, Tupicin reports.

The journalist cites the example of a man convicted of double murder who was released for military service and tried to find a job as a school teacher upon his return from the front. According to Tupicin, his name was erased from all criminal records after serving in the Wagner Group, a private Russian mercenary unit.

“The school principal called me in horror and said that just looking at him scared her,” Tupicin recalls. The school refused to hire him, despite his decorations and veteran's ID.

According to Aleksandra Arkhipova, family members of military personnel also complain about being excluded by society. One woman wrote to her that she "wanted to be a hero's wife," but instead faces rejection.

She criticizes the Russian state for turning war participants into "mercenaries," prioritizing high monetary payments and compensation instead of "the idea of ​​service and heroism."

For deserter Igor Shchetko, who did everything he could to avoid spending a single day in the war, something else is important. “I don’t have a drop of Ukrainian blood on my hands – neither civilian nor soldier,” he says, recalling the first time he felt safe in France since his escape. “I don’t regret anything, I stayed true to myself.”