Ukraine’s Ombudsman Warns of ‘Systemic’ Mobilization Corruption, Says Men Can Be Smuggled Out for $70,000

Ukraine’s Parliamentary Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets has warned that corruption and rights violations in the country’s mobilization system have reached a dangerous level, with a “turnkey” service allegedly allowing men to be smuggled across the border directly from military recruitment vans for up to $70,000.Lubinets made the comments in an interview with Ukrainian media outlet Ukrainska Pravda published on Tuesday, Sept. 1.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.He said the cost of escaping from a Territorial Recruitment Center (TRC) could reach $10,000, while being released from inside a TRC could cost $15,000.“One of the latest stories that we are still confirming: in a border region, a new ‘turnkey’ service has appeared – a person can pay $50,000–$70,000, and then they are taken directly from the bus across Ukraine’s border,” Lubinets said.According to the ombudsman, corruption has become particularly widespread in Ukraine’s Zakarpattia region, while he said similar problems were much less common in frontline regions such as Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv.Lubinets attributed the growth of corruption to what he described as failed state policy on mobilization.“We have come very close” to a point of no returnLubinets said complaints about mobilization-related rights violations increased dramatically after 2024, when forced recruitment practices became more widespread.In his account, authorities began setting monthly mobilization targets of around 30,000 people across Ukraine. The pressure to meet those targets contributed to people being taken into military recruitment centers regardless of their health or eligibility, he said. Other Topics of Interest Xi Says China Ready to Step Up Peace Efforts in Ukraine, Middle East, Afghanistan At the SCO summit, Xi also pushed China’s vision of a multipolar world and deeper cooperation on AI, security and development. “Carrying out the plan, they began taking everyone one by one, and total corruption appeared in the mobilization system,” Lubinets said.He warned that continued abuses could provoke growing resistance from Ukrainian society.“We have not yet passed the point of no return, but we are very close to it,” he said.Lubinets said he condemns both attacks on TRC personnel and criminal violations allegedly committed by TRC employees, arguing that neither side should be allowed to act outside the law.He also said law enforcement agencies have begun opening criminal proceedings over alleged violations during mobilization based on materials from his office.The ombudsman cited several cases in Zakarpattia that he said illustrated the scale of the problem, including alleged illegal detentions, the removal of deferments, and demands for money in exchange for release.In one case, Lubinets said, a person spent 55 days inside a TRC. He also described a case involving a veteran who had fought in Bakhmut and was allegedly told either to go to war or provide money.Lubinets said that, in another case, around 1,500 young men were removed from military registration in a single day, with some subsequently leaving Ukraine.“This is me publicly demonstrating 1% of what we find,” he said. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.