Donetsk, Dec 27 (Agency) Mobilized Ukrainian citizens go to train in Europe hoping to request political asylum, a Ukrainian prisoner of war, 2nd Lt. Pavel Salyi, told Sputnik on Friday. “When you arrive in Europe, you can run up to any police officer, raise your hands, and shout that you seek political asylum, and after that you will not be returned to Ukraine,” Salyi said. He added that this is the reason why many servicepeople want to go to Western countries for training.
“If you can run through the Ukrainian guard, it means you were able to avoid war for yourself,” the prisoner of war, captured in the village of Trudovoe (also known as Trudove) in the Donetsk People’s Republic, said. Besides, he added, another reason to go train in Europe is that the training lasts three months, meaning one can delay being drafted to the front lines for that time. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law in April to lower the draft age from 27 to 25, prompting a public outcry. The government said in August that it had no plans to drop the draft age lower. A Ukrainian lawmaker said in September that the army had banned recruiting citizens under 25, who previously had the “fit for limited military service” status.