In March, record number of Russian servicemen request to surrender

This was stated during the telethon by Vitaliy Matvienko, spokesman for the "I Want to Live". The project aims to help Russian servicemen who do not wish to participate in the Russian aggression and to safely surrender to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

He said that in March the project recorded a record number of such appeals - more than 3,000, which is twice as many as in 2022. 

"In October and December 2022, we recorded an average of 1400-1500 appeals per month. In January-March, the number increased to 2500," Matvienko said.

He specified that there are individual and group appeals, and Russians surrender along the entire front line, often with equipment, including unique models.

According to Matvienko, the special interest in the I Want to Live project on the part of Russian soldiers is due to the expected counteroffensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as the growing losses in the Russian army and the deterioration of their morale.

• According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, over the six months of the project's operation, despite Roskomnadzor's regular attempts to block access, the I Want to Live website has been visited by more than 14 million people, 84% of whom are visitors from Russia. In addition to the Russian military, their relatives and friends call the hotline, as mobilized Russians who arrived in Ukraine as part of the occupation army often do not have access to the Internet or communication.