Danila Davydov said he left Russia within weeks of the Kremlin sending troops into Ukraine because he feared having to fight in a war he doesn’t support.
The 22-year-old digital artist who had been living in St Petersburg said that as the conflict dragged on he was concerned that Russia could place pressure on young people like him to serve in the military.
"I didn't want to go to war or go to prison, so I decided to leave," Davydov told Reuters from Kazakhstan, where he said he’s currently working.
He is among what some lawyers and rights advocates say is an increased number of young Russian men looking to avoid the country’s mandatory military service since the conflict with Ukraine began in late February, illustrating the ambivalence in Russian society to the conflict.
Some young men are leaving the country while others are seeking advice on obtaining exemptions or alternative avenues, or simply ignoring their summons in the hopes that authorities don’t pursue them, according to Reuters interviews with seven men currently seeking to avoid serving in the military as well as five lawyers and rights advocates.
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