Ukraine exposes draft evasion schemes as Council of Europe reviews gender violence progress

Ukrainian law enforcement agencies have uncovered several corruption schemes facilitating draft evasion and desertion across the country. In Kyiv Oblast, private educational institutions charged military-age men $10,000 initially plus monthly fees to register them as fake teachers, granting mobilization deferments. Separately, the State Bureau of Investigation charged three individuals for smuggling soldiers away from military units for up to $13,000. Reports also highlighted men contracting marriages with disabled women to legally secure deferments.

In security developments, military counterintelligence reported thwarting over 50 Russian assassination attempts against Ukrainian soldiers using women recruited to arrange fake dates with poison or explosives. Meanwhile, the Council of Europe issued its first comprehensive assessment evaluating Ukraine's progress in implementing the Istanbul Convention on combating violence against women.

Sources: Liga net, NV, Radio Svoboda, Slidstvo.Info, Ukrainska Pravda