More Russian men look to avoid military service, some lawyers and rights groups say

Danila Davydov, a 22-year-old digital artist, poses for a photograph in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan in this handout picture taken May 2022. Picture taken May 2022. Courtesy Dana Grivtsova/Handout via REUTERS

LONDON (Reuters) - Danila Davydov said he left Russia within weeks of the Kremlin sending troops into Ukraine because he feared having to fight in a war he doesn’t support.

The 22-year-old digital artist who had been living in St Petersburg said that as the conflict dragged on he was concerned that Russia could place pressure on young people like him to serve in the military.