According to the translation at the UN, the soldier’s mother asked if he was in training exercises and why it had been so long since he’d responded. When the soldier said he wasn’t in Crimea, his mother asked where he was. “Mom,” the soldier allegedly texted back. “I’m in Ukraine.”

“There is a real war raging here. I am afraid,” the soldier’s text said, according to the UN translation. “We are bombing all of the cities, together. Even targeting civilians. We were told that they would welcome us and they are falling under our armored vehicles, throwing themselves under the wheels and not allowing us to pass. They call us fascists, Mama, this is so hard.”

Conscription is used in Russia; the term of service is 12 months; and the eligible age is between 18 and 33 years old. Deferments are provided to undergraduate and graduate students, men supporting disabled relatives, parents of at least two children and — upon Presidential proclamation — to some employees of military-oriented enterprises. Men holding a Ph.D., as well as sons and brothers of servicemen killed or disabled during their military service, are released from conscription.

Russian soldiers from all across the country were deceived into heading to the Ukrainian border, and some were beaten if they resisted, according to the Committee of Soldiers’ Mothers, a Russian non-governmental organization that works to expose human rights violations within the military.

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The claims that some Russian soldiers were literally forced into the war with Ukraine come after Britain’s Defense Ministry released footage it said showed Russia was using mobile crematoriums to conceal its own soldiers’ deaths from the world.

Defense Minister Ben Wallace told The Telegraph the vehicle-mounted crematoriums “evaporate” each body placed inside them.

He described the crematoriums as a “very chilling side effect of how the Russians view their forces.”

“We offer Russian soldiers a choice: to die in an unjust war, or full amnesty and 5 million rubles of compensation if they put down their guns and voluntarily surrender to prison,” the ministry said on its official Facebook page and Twitter account.

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As of press time, that was about $48,000.

The offer is meant to further hinder the Russian advance on Kyiv, which has been stalled by logistics failures.

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“A lot of them are very young. The Kremlin turns them into criminals, turns them into murderers. Some of them were deceived,” ministry officials said. “Ukraine is a civilized country. All prisoners are safe, they are being helped. They already communicate with loved ones.”

Officials said their message to Russian troops is: “You have a chance to start a new life. Make a choice. Leave without a weapon with a white flag. Say a code word: ‘million.’ Live a life. Give your family a hug. For those who will continue to behave like an occupier — there will be no mercy.”