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Ukraine is apparently having to cope with heavy losses among its soldiers in the war with Vladimir Putin’s Russia – especially among young recruits.
Kiev – According to British information, they have reached new highs: Russian losses in the Ukraine war. But: Kiev also has to cope with heavy losses among its soldiers in its struggle with the Moscow regime under Vladimir Putin. According to a report, this applies particularly to young recruits when defending against the attack by Russia, which violates international law.
Losses to Russia: Ukraine loses many young recruits
The American newspaper reported on this at the end of September Financial Times (FT). What’s explosive about it is that the information comes from the Ukrainian army. And not from official bodies in the government or the General Staff of Ukraine. The newspaper’s journalists said they spoke to around a dozen Ukrainian commanders and officers.
According to the report, they spoke of poorly trained and sometimes fearful recruits. Like those again Moscow Times writes, as a result of the new conscription law, which has been in force since May, Kiev is currently drawing an average of around 30,000 new recruits into the Ukrainian war every month, mostly young men without any combat experience.
Ukraine has to cope with heavy losses among its soldiers. (Symbolic photo) © IMAGO / NurPhoto
Immense losses among young recruits in the first days on the Ukrainian front
“Some of them just freeze because they are afraid to shoot at the enemy. They are sent back in sacks or seriously wounded,” said the commander of a unit fighting in the Donetsk region FT.
According to estimates by the commanders with whom the American newspaper spoke, 50 to 70 percent of recruits are killed or wounded in the first days after reaching the front. “When they reach their positions, many run away at the first shell explosion,” explained the deputy commander of a unit from the 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Russia is apparently close to taking Wuhledar in the Ukraine war
This contingent of troops defends Wuhledar, which, according to the independent Eastern European Moscow Times could foreseeably fall to the Russians. The completely destroyed small town with a former population of 15,000 is considered a Donbass bastion. The Ukrainian army has held the long-standing front-line city not just since the start of the Russian attack in February 2022, but since the start of fighting with the pro-Russian separatists in the summer of 2014.
But now Wuhledar is finally in danger of falling. A commander with the call sign “Lawyer,” who according to his own information worked as a lawyer before the Ukraine war, said: “We are desperately lacking strong fighters.”
Ukraine’s losses: Many tanks are destroyed against Russia
That’s not all: The Moscow Times attributes new Russian territorial gains, particularly in Donbass, to Ukrainian rotations in which experienced fighters are exchanged for inexperienced recruits who entered the war late. The Battle of Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast is cited as an example.
There are now some reports of recruits who are not sufficiently trained and prepared. “Some people don’t want to shoot. They see the enemy in firing position in the trench and do not open fire. That’s why our men die,” said a battalion leader from the 47th Brigade in the summer: “If they don’t use the weapon, they are ineffective.”
Source: Oryx, as of September 27th, 8:15 p.m
And Ukraine’s tank losses are also serious. Like the open source intelligence website Oryx on September 27, 2024, the Ukrainian army had lost (at least) 940 main battle tanks, 1,036 infantry fighting vehicles and a total of 6,652 military vehicles against Putin’s invasion forces. And it’s all about the documented numbers. (pm)
