Mothers flood hotline in search of ‘lost’ sons

Thousands of Russian women beg helpline for information about loved ones fighting in Ukraine

‘We’re helping find their relatives who were deceived and who had no idea they would end up in Ukraine’

‘This is not our fault. They [the Russian soldiers in Ukraine] didn’t choose this’

DESPERATE Russian mothers and wives can be heard begging for information about their “lost” sons and husbands in messages to a Ukrainian government hotline that says it has had more than 6,000 calls since the start of the invasion.

The “Come Back from Ukraine Alive Line” was set up by Kyiv as a gesture of compassion for Russian women and also to influence public opinion in a country where state media portray Ukraine as run by “neo-nazis”, organisers said.

“We’re helping find their relatives who were deceived and who had no idea they would end up in Ukraine,” said a woman identified only as Kristian, who runs the Interior Ministry’s hotline.

“We will help to stop the war. They don’t know what really is happening in Ukraine. Our goal is to get the truth out.”

In one leaked call, heard by CNN, a tearful woman tells the operator she has not heard from her husband in more than two months. Later in the call, she apologises for the invasion.

“This is not our fault,” she says. “I’m scared. They [the Russian soldiers in Ukraine] didn’t choose this.”

The sentiment is echoed in several calls, with women saying they had no idea their loved ones would end up in Ukraine. They are heard saying they have nothing against the country, in spite of what they have been told by Kremlin-controlled media.

“You are not to blame for anything,” one caller said. “Please understand us: they were forced to do it. I want everyone to live in peace.”

Ukrainian authorities have been flooding social media with photographs and videos of Russian prisoners of war, who said they had no idea they would be fighting in Ukraine and who were dismayed at the idea of hostilities against the neighbouring country.

“Look For Your People”, a Ukrainian channel on the Telegram messaging app that has more than 800,000 subscribers, has been posting dozens of photographs of killed Russian soldiers, IDS of the Russian troops and photographs and videos of Russian prisoners of war.

By yesterday, the channel had processed almost 32,000 requests from people looking for their relatives.

Meanwhile, in Moscow, Vladimir Putin, the president, told Russian women that he understood “how much you worry about your loved ones”.

He made the comments in an address broadcast on state television to mark International Women’s Day, which is a public holiday in Russia.

Mr Putin told the “mothers, wives, sisters, fiancées and girlfriends of our soldiers and officers” now fighting in Ukraine that “you should be proud of them as much as the country is proud and worried about them”.

Russia insists it is involved in a “special military operation” in Ukraine to “liberate” its neighbour of Nazi elements.

In a bid to assuage fears that Moscow could impose martial law, widening conscription to prop up the Russian army, Mr Putin claimed that conscripts were “not taking part and will not take part” in the hostilities.

“It is only professional soldiers who are engaged in dealing with the tasks,” he said, despite reports that teenage conscripts have been forced to sign up for active service.

“I am sure they will ensure safety and peace for the people of Russia.”

In a sign that Western sanctions are starting to bite, Mr Putin announced new benefits for families with children, saying that his government would support its citizens through this difficult period for the economy. He said the support would start from next month, without specifying how much families would be given.

Standing in a room with a statue of Catherine the Great behind him, Mr Putin hailed the Russian empress, who annexed Crimea in the 18th century, for her unwavering patriotism even though she was born a German princess.

Meanwhile, Russia’s embattled human rights activists came under intensified pressure after Mr Putin signed a bill last week that could see anyone who publicly questions the rationale behind the war face treason charges punishable by 15 years in prison.

When contacted by The Daily Telegraph yesterday, one of Russia’s leading activists said she was no longer willing to be interviewed or make any comments, even off the record, as she said her work could now see her face criminal prosecution.

Feminist activists in Russia yesterday marked International Women’s Day by showing up at war memorials across the country to leave flowers in protest against the war. In Moscow, flowers could be seen next to Kievskaya Metro station and next to a monument to a Ukrainian writer. Women also gathered in squares in Moscow and St Petersburg, standing in silent protest, holding flowers. A dozen women who were detained near Moscow’s Red Square yesterday were later pictured sitting in a police van with bouquets of red tulips.