The war in Ukraine, now dragging into its third year, is doing more than bleeding Russian soldiers. It is draining the trust and warmth once shared with nations that stood shoulder to shoulder with the Kremlin.

M ore than 18,000 Russian soldiers have been reported to the courts for being absent without leave since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, the UK says. According to the latest update on X from the Ministry of Defence (MoD), 18,159 troops have been faced with a decade-long prison sentence for going AWOL between February 2022 and May 2025.