Russia presses Ukrainian prisoners in Luhansk Oblast into military service
Serhiy Haidai (Photo:suspilne.media)
Russian occupation “authorities” in Ukraine’s Luhansk Oblast are forcing prisoners into military service and deploying them to the frontlines, former regional governor Serhiy Haidai told Ukrainian journalist Vasyli Holovanov on March 16.
“When it comes to (prison) colonies in occupied Luhansk Oblast, we’re talking about coercion, not encouragement (to enlist),” said Haidai.
“Any semblance of self-determination or lawfulness is out of the question.”
He added that prisoners in Russia-occupied territories have no choice but to agree to fight against their own country.
“There’s a war on, and they simply need cannon fodder, so (they) deploy everyone (to the battlefield),” the former governor concluded.
In January, media reports suggested that only 10,000 Russian prisoners remain alive out of 50,000 recruited by Russia’s private military company Wagner Group.
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