Hundreds of Russian soldiers have defected to Ukraine in a major blow to Vladimir Putin.
The Russian President was unable to block a number of military personnel defecting to the ex-Soviet state via an army hotline.
Daniil Alfyorov, a lieutenant in the Russian army, sat between two Ukrainian military intelligence officers in Kyiv in October to denounce the Kremlin’s illegal invasion.
The 27-year-old also helped 11 Russian soldiers under his command in Kherson defect.
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with service members
REUTERS
A dozen soldiers called Kyiv’s “I want to live” hotline.
The hotline was set up by Ukraine’s military intelligence unit in September 2022 to coax Russian troops wanting to defect to switch sides.
Operation Barynya, Kyiv’s code for the surrender, has provided Ukraine with battlefield intelligence.
More than 220 Russian soldiers have defected via the hotline.
Over 1,000 additional cases were pending, GUR’s department for prisoners of war spokesperson Vitaliy Matvienko claimed last month.
A recording heard by The Financial Times confirmed the opening message said: “Hello, you called the hotline of the defence intelligence of Ukraine. Do you want to live?”
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Recruits of the Russian Volunteer Corps attend military exercises
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Three Russian soldiers reportedly hand themselves over every week.
They are taken into Ukrainian custody as prisoners of war.
More than 26,000 calls have reportedly been made to the hotline or the accompanying chatbot Telegram messenger.
The “I want to live” hotline is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by 10 operators working from a secret location in Kyiv.
However, Russian soldiers often seek reassurance that Kremlin-driven propaganda about Ukraine being a “neo-Nazi regime” is untrue.
Kyiv promises the soldiers will live and be treated up rules set out by the Geneva Conventions.
Vladimir Putin
GettyOther guarantees include medical care, three hot meals a day, communication with family back home and, of course, the likelihood of being exchanged for Ukrainian POWs and returning home to Russia.
It is also possible to apply for asylum in Ukraine.
“In March 2023, we received almost 3,000 applications,” Matvienko said.
“That’s compared to December 2022, when there were 1,500 applications.”
Western estimates suggest Russia has sustained 100,000 more deaths and injuries compared with Ukraine.
Maxim Kuzminov, a helicopter pilot, was among the more notable defectors.
Russian servicemen patrol the destroyed part of the Ilyich Iron and Steel Works in Ukraine's port city of Mariupol
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He contacted GUR agents in December 2022 to confirm he was willing to surrender in exchange for a financial reward and a new life for his family in Ukraine.
Kyiv passed a law to attract disgruntled Russian troops with a reward pot of up to £500,000 for thoe who came with valuable military equipment.
Despite keeping his defection under wraps, Russia eventually cottoned on to his plan and opened fire at his helicopter as it crossed into Ukraine.
He was wounded in the leg and landed in a grassy field in Poltava around 20 minutes later.
Kuzminov has been encouraging Russian comrades to continue to defect, saying: “You won’t regret it.”
