Border guards detain Chechen deserter who was trying to break into Ukraine from Slovakia

Ukraine's State Border Guard Service (SBGS) has detained a 24-year-old native of Chechnya who is a deserter from the Russian army. The man attempted to cross the Ukrainian-Slovakian border illegally, bypassing the official border crossing points, without carrying any documents. This is reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing an official statement from the SBGS.

How the violator was detected

The illegal migrant was detected by border guards of the Chop detachment of the SBGS. A service dog was deployed to locate the violator, which made it possible to record the fact of an illegal border crossing in the so-called "green zone" — a section not equipped with border crossing point infrastructure. The detainee did not present any documents confirming his identity or the legality of his stay in Europe.

The deserter's story: from Chechnya to Europe

During the check, border guards established that the detainee had previously been conscripted by force into the Russian army. According to the SBGS, the man deserted his post of service and managed to leave Russian territory using forged documents. After fleeing, he ended up on Slovakian territory, where he apparently stayed illegally for a certain period. It was from there that he attempted to illegally enter Ukrainian territory.

What awaits the detainee

According to the SBGS, a deportation procedure will be applied to the violator. The detainee will be handed over to Slovakian law enforcement agencies under readmission — a mechanism provided for by agreements on the return of illegal migrants to the country through which they entered the EU. Thus, the man's further fate will be determined within the framework of Slovakian legislation and bilateral agreements.

Context: the situation at the front and the Kremlin's position

The case of the Chechen deserter comes against the backdrop of ongoing hostilities. As noted by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Russian leadership is not showing any readiness to make substantial compromises for the sake of ending the war against Ukraine. The institute's analysts point out that the Kremlin still expects to achieve its goals exclusively by military means, relying on a distorted assessment of the situation at the front. Over the past few days, according to ISW data, Russian occupiers were conducting offensive operations on various directions, however, the Defense Forces of Ukraine successfully repelled the enemy's attacks and did not allow them to achieve their objectives.