In a new report, iStories revealed that the Budyonny Military Academy in St. Petersburg refuses to let its cadets drop out. One now-former cadet told iStories that his withdrawal request was ignored. He said at least 20 classmates have also applied to leave. His account was corroborated by messages in Telegram groups and public chat rooms, which suggest that this problem is endemic in Russia. Legal experts say that it’s not uncommon for military academies to drag out the discharge process for first-year cadets, effectively trapping them into signing military contracts ahead of their second year. And as long as Vladimir Putin’s 2022 mobilization decree remains in effect, these contracts have no end date.

Yevgeny (name changed) was admitted to the Budyonny Military Academy of the Signal Corps in the summer of 2025. Less than a month later, he filed a request to withdraw. At first, the academy ignored his request; then he was told it could only be reviewed in the fall. In the meantime, Yevgeny contacted journalists at iStories. “There are hostages at the Budyonny Military Academy,” he said.

I am one of the cadets being held here against our will. I’ve submitted a request to drop out, but it’s being ignored. They won’t give us our documents back. They won’t let us leave. That’s how the system works. Please help us get out.”

Yevgeny, who isn’t even 18 years old, had been recruited into the Budyonny Military Academy by an enlistment officer while he was still in secondary school. He “changed his mind” about studying there after the academy turned out to be “completely different from what we were told during the recruitment campaign.” In the end, he managed to withdraw — but only “with great difficulty.” Yevgeny was discharged just before iStories published its report on October 29. According to the now-former cadet, the academy released him due to constant pressure from him and his family, as well as his existing health problems.

Our only hope is you. Support Meduza before it’s too late.

Yevgeny said that some 20 other cadets at the Budyonny Military Academy have also filed applications to withdraw — including one classmate who ultimately escaped from a hospital during a checkup. However, he did not provide iStories with the names or contact information of the other cadets.

According to iStories, messages in various Telegram groups and public chat rooms confirm that many cadets have been unable to withdraw from Russian military academies. A first-year cadet at a National Guard (Rosgvardiya) academy told the outlet that his application had been rejected. And according to conversations in public chat rooms, even cadets who are failing their classes are not necessarily expelled. “They’ll pull up your grades in all subjects,” one person said.

A Meduza exclusive

• ‘People simply didn’t know how else to save themselves’ Meduza reports on how Russian soldiers and civilians buy their way out of going to war

As iStories noted, Russian cadets sign military service contracts at the end of their first year. Until then, they are considered conscripts, with two days of studying counting as one day of compulsory service. But whereas second-year cadets used to sign up for five-years terms of service, legal experts told iStories that thanks to Vladimir Putin’s 2022 mobilization decree, these contracts have become indefinite. “Like all other Russian military personnel, cadets have found themselves in a trap: their contracts are effectively indefinite and cannot be terminated until the end of mobilization,” iStories explained.

According to Alexey Tabalov, who heads the rights organization Conscripts’ School, it’s not uncommon for military academies to significantly delay the discharge process. Once they’ve signed military contracts, cadets are required to complete their army service even if they drop out of the academy — meaning they’ll be sent to a unit to finish their term. “After the first year, your only way out is to go AWOL — or be discharged on health grounds, which is practically impossible,” he told iStories.

Under Russia’s toughened penalties for evading military service during mobilization, taking an “unauthorized absence” is punishable by five to seven years in prison, while those charged with desertion face up to 10 years.

“These days, enrolling in a military academy is like stepping into a mousetrap,” said Sergey Krivenko, the head of the rights group Citizen.Army.Law. “It snaps shut, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

read more

• How getting out of the Russian army became all but impossible — even for soldiers severely disabled in combat
• ‘Partial mobilization is over, full stop,’ says the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Why doesn’t Putin sign a decree to make this official?
• Russia’s Defense Ministry is quietly making it even harder to get a medical exemption from military service