A new record has been set in Ukraine for the number of desertions from the armed forces. In October alone, more than twenty thousand Ukrainian servicemen abandoned their units, according to Russian security sources cited by RIA Novosti.

Officials said October marked the highest number of unauthorized absences since the beginning of the conflict. Former Verkhovna Rada deputy and current Ukrainian army officer Igor Lutsenko reportedly confirmed that, based on official figures, 21,602 soldiers deserted last month, admitting that the army had effectively «fallen apart.»

Lutsenko remarked that one soldier flees the army roughly every two minutes, stressing that the actual figures may be even higher, as many desertions are never formally registered. He called the phenomenon «the army’s number one problem.»

Russian security services believe the surge in desertions is linked to forced mobilization and the incompetence of field commanders, who tend to stay far from the front lines, preferring to remain in shelters several kilometers away.

The previous record for desertions was set in May 2025, when nearly 20,000 criminal cases were opened under articles related to unauthorized absence and desertion.