Kazakhstan sends back Russian deserter who sought asylum

Kazakh police have detained and handed over a Russian military deserter who had requested asylum in the country, according to activists.

Semyon Bazhukov was arrested in the village of Aksu-Ayuly and transferred to Russia’s military police, Alexey Alshansky, founder of the anti-war project, has said.

Bazhukov had previously fled a Russian military base in Priozersk, a town in central Kazakhstan. The independent outlet Mediazona reported that he ended up at the base after being detained by Kazakh police in December 2025, despite having applied for asylum two months earlier.

According to his mother, Bazhukov moved to Russia in 2022, obtained Russian citizenship and later enlisted in the army. He was subsequently sent to fight in Ukraine, where, she said, he “came to understand the reality of the situation”, deserted his unit and fled to Kazakhstan.

Mediazona, citing leaked data, said the desertion occurred in the summer of 2023. Russian authorities had since listed Bazhukov as wanted.

In a statement to police, his mother said her son was handed over to Russian military police on 17 December.

While in Priozersk, Bazhukov was formally assigned to a military unit. On February 1, he told human rights defenders that he was about to be flown to Russia, prompting him to attempt to flee again. Kazakh police detained him while he was travelling from Priozersk to the capital, Astana, the outlet reported.

By Aghakazim Guliyev