Putin has long been criticized for Russia's heavy losses in the Ukraine war. Now sick people are sent to the front – only a few survive.
Kiev – Ukrainian and Russian soldiers have been fighting on the front lines in the Ukrainian war for almost two years – and there is still no end in sight. Not only are weapons and ammunition running out, but so are personnel. Due to high losses for Russia, the Kremlin is constantly looking for new recruiting opportunities in order to be successful in the war in Ukraine. An intercepted phone call now suggests that even sick soldiers have to go to the front.
“Cannon fodder”: Russia sends sick soldiers to the front because of losses
Sick soldiers are being used as “cannon fodder,” a Russian soldier from the 5th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade is said to have said in a wiretapped phone call about the conditions in the Ukraine war. Ukrainian intelligence shared the conversation on Telegram Kyiv Post translated it. Accordingly, many soldiers in his troops suffer from serious illnesses such as tuberculosis and HIV. The soldier accuses the Russian military command of senselessly causing the men's deaths with their orders.
The commanders “lost the entire force, killed them all. Bastards with messed up fantasies. They have [die Soldaten] thrown in like meat, like cannon fodder,” said the soldier on the phone. He himself is also infected with HIV. “So here are 16 people with hepatitis, suspected tuberculosis, lung diseases and tumors in the head,” he continued. “.HIV – there are two more of them.”
“No salary”: Ukraine war survivors released into reserve without support
Those who survived the front were later released into the reserves without financial support. “Two days later a guy I had never seen before came. He said, 'Guys, if you now write a report that you have no complaints against the senior leadership of this new battalion, then you can go home now. But keep in mind that you won’t see the salary for January,” he said.
The soldier doesn't see any point in it: “Well, I guess – screw it, I wouldn't have gotten the salary anyway. They shouted at me in the village of Novotroitske that I would be punished and sent back to the front.”
Heavy losses in the Ukraine war: Russia recruits prisoners and women
The Kremlin has been using all possible means for months to counteract the shortage of personnel for the war of aggression. In addition to recruiting detainees for Russia's military, Moscow is said to have invested in forced mobilization mechanisms in the occupied territories of Ukraine, according to the HUR. At the same time, the Putin government has been focusing on recruiting women for combat missions since last year – in the mercenary unit “Redut”, which is subordinate to the Russian Defense Ministry, according to the Internet portal stories. The RND reported on Ukrainian children that Russia wants to unite in a youth army.
Casualties in the Ukraine War: Russia tries to recruit Cubans to the front
But Russia went even further: The Foreign Ministry in Cuba reported that Russia was said to have operated a network to illegally recruit Cubans for “military operations in Ukraine.” Putin also relied on the recruitment of ethnic minorities in Siberia. “You are his cannon fodder,” explained British intelligence chief Richard Moore in the summer of 2022.
Because of Putin's history, the sick soldier's intercepted phone call also seems credible. The losses for Russia in the Ukraine war are so high that sick people are now becoming “cannon fodder”. (hk)
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