Topics: Russia, Vladimir Putin, Ukraine
It appears Russians really don't want to be conscripted into the war with Ukraine and are prepared to go to big measures to avoid the frontline.
Vladimir Putin addressed the nation in a televised address to announce pre-emptive military action following a lack of cooperation from the West in finding a solution to the 'Donbas problem'.
The president called up reservists to fight in the ongoing conflict, stating that those who break ranks will be punished.
He said: "Only citizens who are currently in the reserve and, above all, those who served in the Armed Forces, have certain military specialties and relevant experience, will be subject to conscription."
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Even though that might be a small percentage of the Russian population, it's enough to see many people head to Google to see how they can get out of being sent to war.
Google search trends for 'как сломать руку', which is loosely translated to 'how to break a hand/arm', have skyrocketed since Putin's address.
Ukraine's Defence Ministry poked fun at the idea of Russians not wanting to take part in the war.
It wrote on Twitter: "Russians are now actively Googling how to avoid mobilization and stay alive.
"They would have been better off Googling instructions for making Molotov cocktails when there was still time."
There have been several headlines since Moscow invaded Ukraine back in February of Russian soldiers going to extreme lengths to be sent home.
An intercepted call back in March, shared by Eastern European news service Nexta, revealed Russian soldiers were apparently willing to injure themselves with their own weapons just to get out of Ukraine.
Another intercepted conversation of the #SBU shows how demoralized and broken the invader army is: #Russian occupiers look for "#Ukrainian ammunition" to shoot themselves in the legs and go to the hospital. pic.twitter.com/jL2LJALjIm
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 17, 2022
In a translation of the intercepted audio, a man can be heard calling his mother back in Russia.
The call was intercepted by the Ukrainian Security Service, who decided to broadcast it to show what the situation was like on the warfront.
In the call, he told her they are searching for 7.62 bullets fired by Ukrainian soldiers, instead of the 5.62 ammo fired by their Russian AK-74s to make it seem they were injured in battle.
The man, who was clearly desperate to escape the battlefield horrors of Ukraine, explained to his mother that he can't just return home as those who refuse Putin can face prison sentences for roughly eight years.
So, he alleged some troops started giving each other flesh wounds 'so they would put some bandages on and sent us to the hospital in Budennovsk' in southern Russia.
The soldier claimed at least '120' people have already been 'sent back to the hospital with wounds'.
However, he also warned the Ukrainian military had blown up all their equipment and he's now fearing for his life.
