Many Russian soldiers would rather do time than die at the front, but the military is increasingly hauling them back to the war anyway

As of May 2025, more than 28,000 Russians had been convicted of going AWOL. People are fleeing because they don’t want to fight. In late June 2026, authorities in the Belgorod region declared 13 people wanted after they fled almost simultaneously. Those who go AWOL — known colloquially as sochintsy, after “SOCh,” the Russian abbreviation for unauthorized absence from one’s unit — are often caught, and during the roundups even their relatives can be put at risk. One possible scenario is prison time, which at least secures the soldier’s discharge from service. In recent years, however, authorities have generally tried to send detainees back to the war. What follows is an account of how events can unfold when a mobilized or contract soldier goes AWOL, and of what such soldiers can do to avoid being returned to service.

This article is part of a joint project by Meduza and Peace Plea (Prizyv k sovesti). It lays out the legal grounds for refusing to serve in Russia and the fine points of the relevant laws. Peace Plea provides free consultations to Russians who don’t want to fight and need help.

The steps involved in going AWOL are different for conscripts than for those serving on contract or called up under mobilization. The recommendations below apply to the latter group; those in conscript service are advised to consult lawyers and rights advocates.

Soldiers still weighing whether to go AWOL

Anyone making such a decision needs to understand the risks and options involved.

The first step is to assess whether any alternatives to going AWOL remain. Soldiers with serious enough health problems, for example, may be able to pursue a review by a military medical commission. Soldiers can also be discharged on the basis of documents marked DSP — “for official use only.” Rights advocates are gradually working out which circumstances qualify for this route; the specialists at Peace Plea, who consult free of charge, can offer more detail. More on the alternatives to going AWOL is available at this link.

If going AWOL still seems like the only way out, thorough preparation is important: understanding what penalties apply in different situations; gathering and saving, in advance, copies of all documents that might be needed (military ID, passport, medical records); and writing down the contact information of relatives, rights advocates, and other trusted people. Anyone who has been subjected to violence should collect all available evidence — photos, video, and audio. A detailed, step-by-step guide to planning to go AWOL, with all its nuances, is available in these instructions.

Those who have left recently

The first two days after leaving a unit are not yet treated as a crime. During that window, a soldier can voluntarily come forward to a military investigative department (VSO) to report a crime committed against them. Rights advocates recommend that soldiers reach out to them first, as soon as possible: they can help assess the situation, explain the possible consequences, and advise on next steps.

An absence of more than two days can already be treated as grounds for opening a criminal case. In that situation, too, it’s possible to turn oneself in — but the place of surrender should be chosen carefully. A service member is usually attached to a unit based on where the offense is considered to have ended: not the unit where they served, but wherever they were detained, or wherever they turned themselves in. And the practice can vary from region to region. It’s worth trying to find out where a prison sentence is more likely than being sent to the front. This, too, can be discussed with lawyers and rights advocates.

Undergoing independent medical examinations before visiting a VSO is a good idea, as it can eventually help secure a medical discharge. Peace Plea’s bot can recommend suitable independent military medical commissions.

Those who have been AWOL for more than a month

In this situation, the search is likely to be more active, and the treatment upon detention harsher. Rather than waiting to be caught, it’s better to find a lawyer right away and work through the possible consequences.

Being AWOL for longer than a month carries harsher penalties: up to 10 years in a general-regime penal colony under Article 337 of the Russian Criminal Code. With mitigating circumstances, the severity of the offense can be downgraded, in which case the sentence would be served in a penal settlement. And if prosecutors can prove an intent to leave service permanently (which forged documents or a civilian job might indicate), the penalty can reach 15 years in a maximum-security colony under Article 338, for desertion during a period of mobilization.

Those with serious health problems can seek a discharge even while AWOL, and can do so remotely; in such cases a criminal case may not be opened, or an existing one may be dropped (though, as always, there are nuances).

Other scenarios end with a return to service — if no case is opened, if it is closed, or if a suspended sentence is handed down. Meanwhile, according to Peace Plea, the number of forced deployments to the front — including to assault units — has risen significantly since 2024.

More information on how objectors are tracked down, what the risks are for those who try to leave the country, and how to prepare to turn oneself in at a VSO is available in these instructions.

When a soldier — or a loved one — is caught

In Peace Plea’s experience, most sochintsy seek help only after they’ve been caught — or, more often, their relatives do so on their behalf. The main piece of advice in this situation is not to try to act alone. The detainee will certainly need a lawyer, whose presence must be demanded at every procedural step, both orally and in writing.

At this stage, the main goal for detainees and their families is to resist deployment to the front and to push for a criminal case to be opened (if the person agrees to that). Detainees are often cut off from communication, in which case relatives should travel to wherever the person is being held and demand a meeting. Those who are caught are frequently subjected to violence. The involvement of family and friends, complaints to every possible authority, and any kind of active effort can make the person at least somewhat safer.

A full account of what can happen when someone is caught while AWOL is available in this article. Russian soldiers and their families are encouraged to read it and to reach out to Peace Plea as soon as possible; the organization’s staff will explain, free of charge, how best to proceed in a given situation.