Ukrainian media claims a "riot" broke out on the warships, based in nearby Crimea.. At the same time, a number of Russian helicopters and drones were flying over Luzanivka beach, preparing for landing.. We've received your submission. But the soldier later discussed with his father what would happen if he refused to fight. 2023 BBC. Another soldier from the 205th Brigade also said commanders gave no preparation to soldiers before the war, and when the units deployed, they were told they were going on exercises. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Some soldiers, under the threat of violence, were simply driven out to unknown destinations, they have not been seen since, said Vladimir, according to the Guardian. Ukraine's Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova said all of the Ukrainian defenders on Snake Island were killed in an exchange with a Russian warship after they refused to surrender. By Robert Coalson. At the beginning of April, Sergey was sent back over the border to a camp on the Russian side. The soldier, identified by the alias Vladimir, testified he was held in the town of Bryansk with about 80 soldiers guarded by the shadowy organization Wagner Group. I will serve my remaining time and then I am out of here, he said. Benyash said hundreds and hundreds of soldiers had been in touch with his team for advice on how they could avoid being sent to fight. He says his convoy - travelling through northern Ukraine - broke up after just four days when a bridge they were about to cross exploded, killing comrades ahead of them. These people are ready for anything. "I can see that the war continues, it is not going away," he told the BBC. The soldier, "not wanting to take part in a . Also, according to Dmytrashkivskyi, the 136th Brigade, which was formed for the war in Chechnya, has arrived in the Vuhledar area. 2023 Cable News Network. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reports on the conflictin Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin touts success, yet some ofhis soldiers refuse to fight. War-weary Russian soldiers have been thrown in jail by their commanders after they refused to fight in Ukraine over the invasions total disregard for human life, a new report claims. It is, first of all, a classic example of military aggression; it is a war without a just cause. A Russian soldier's service card was stamped "traitor" for refusing . Feb. 27 2023, Published 8:05 a.m. UK intelligence estimates Russian losses near Vuhledar, Russians pushing for breakthrough near Vuhledar, but unlikely to succeed, says UK intelligence, Lori Lightfoot becomes the first Chicago mayor in 40 years to lose re-election, Fiery Greece train collision kills 32, injures at least 85, A condition called POTS rose after covid, but patients can't find care, Drones fly deep inside Russia; Putin orders border tightened, Rep. Lauren Boebert Gets Absolutely Schooled By Jamie Raskin Using Trump's Own Words, Russia redeploys unit of brigade created for war against Chechen Republic of Ichkeria near Vuhledar, Ukrainian Forces Demobilize Russian Tanks Near Frontline Town, Irkutsk conscripts appeal to Putin for third time for being sent to war without training, Multiple Russian Armored Vehicles Destroyed in Single Battle, Ukrainian Brigade Says, The mysterious death of Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrovs favorite fighter. Russian state media aired footage of blitzed buildings and abandoned streets in Bakhmut , the eastern city where Ukrainian forces have been . Separately, a military tribunal said it sentenced Kandarov to five years behind bars for evading military service during mobilisation for more than a month. His unit moved on through the Ukrainian countryside, but there was a clear lack of strategy, he says. By early July, Kaminsky said, he'd had enough: He refused to fight, one of 78 soldiers from his brigade who have refused orders. Lee said one option for the Kremlin would be to authorise the deployment of conscript units to Ukraine, despite Putins earlier pledges that Russia would not use any conscripts in the war. Putin needs to make a decision regarding mobilisation in the coming weeks, said Rob Lee, a military analyst. About 60 Russian paratroopers mutinied and refused to fight in Ukraine, according to Russian press reports related to Putin's government. Ilya Kononov, a contract soldier from the city of Pskov in western Russia, was charged with "unauthorized abandonment of the unit" in July, court records show. They made him lie on the ground and told him to count to ten. "Another reason is the foul way they're being treated. "It was blown up from a grenade launcher or something else. 'I Had To Refuse So I Could Stay Alive' CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reports on the conflict in Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin touts success, yet some of his soldiers refuse to fight. The Kremlin has declined to call for a general mobilization to replenish lost troops, instead using what analysts have described a covert, hybrid campaign to recruit fresh troops: using private military companies, extended age limitations, lucrative financial incentives, and sometimes coercive persuasion to bolster the ranks. Why Russian Soldiers Are Refusing To Fight In The War On Ukraine. Russia struggles to replenish its troops in Ukraine. Russia Ukraine War One Year Anniversary Ukrainian troops and their UK military instructors, commemorate lives lost in the Russian invasion of Ukraine during a sunrise commemorative service, at . VLADIMIR Putin's demoralised and disillusioned troops are fleeing the war in Ukraine and surrendering without a fight, reports claim. Read about our approach to external linking. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 2023 RFE/RL, Inc. All Rights Reserved. But then someone said they'd take my son to work in the storeroom. The prisoners at the penal colony in St. Petersburg were expecting a visit by officials, thinking it would be some sort of inspection. The head of Britain's GCHQ spy service said on Wednesday that new intelligence showed some Russian soldiers in Ukraine had refused to carry out orders, sabotaged their own equipment and . ", Stas was a serving officer when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February. Im tired. "We went without helicopters - just in a column, as though we were heading to a parade.". Kononov reportedly had taken part in President Vladimir Putin's so-called special military operation in the Eastern European nation but left his military unit without permission for more than 10 days. Never mind the myriad reports of Russian troops refusing to fight by the thousands, sabotaging their own shoddy equipment and even deliberately wounding themselves to abandon the war, Russian . If I dont get the compensation that I am entitled to soon, I will go public and make a major issue of it., Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Three days of duty? Ilya Kononov, a contract soldier from the city of Pskov in western Russia, was charged with "unauthorized . He was soon transferred to Belgorod, a Russian city close to the border with Ukraine, where he has been stationed since. Read also: UK intelligence estimates Russian losses near Vuhledar. He told me his face was covered in blood. Commanders try to threaten their soldiers with prison time if they dissent, but we tell the soldiers that they can simply say no, Benyash said, adding that he was not aware of any criminal cases against soldiers who refused to fight. Despite speculation beforehand, Putin did not formally declare war on Ukraine during his Victory Day speech on 9 May. Hawara: 'What happened was horrific and barbaric', The people who want you to believe the Ukraine war is fake. The unit, stationed in Russias far east during peacetime, first entered Ukraine from Belarus when the war started at the end of February and saw bitter combat with Ukrainian forces. VideoRecord numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. He managed to contact his mother, Oxana, back in Russia to tell her what was going on. ", "People here don't understand how much danger we're in. Russia blaming Ukraine for killing of daughter of Putin ally. The Russian authorities dismiss reports of disillusioned soldiers and detention centres as fake news. A Russian military unit deployed in Ukraine's south has refused to fight over a lack of vital supplies such as water, Ukraine said Sunday. He simply declares that he has anti-war convictions. For many Russian soldiers, the war in Ukraine is one they don't want to fight. Perhaps this is due to the weather conditions, which doesnt allow them to actively use military equipment now, the spokesperson said. Putin's army continues its full-scale aggression in Ukraine. Sergei made several trips to the front line to try to secure his son's release. An anonymous specialist from a coalition of lawyers and experts from Russian human rights organizations told independent Russian news outlet MediaZona that Kononov's punishment in the form of a one-year restriction in military service does not imply early dismissal and is instead "something like corrective labor for military personnel.". In the southern Russian town of Budyonnovsk, on the home base for the 205th Cossack Motorized Rifle Brigade, commanders have erected a wall of shame with the names, ranks, and photographs of some 300 soldiers who have disobeyed orders in the Ukraine war. The Insider. He is now home in Russia, having taken legal advice to avoid being sent back to the front line. Stas, an army officer, had written a letter to the . It soon became clear that not everyone was onboard with it. Argument | Michael Walzer. Boris Johnson's cabinet received an update from a senior national security official on Tuesday morning. But after a certain adaptation period, our men fight brilliantly.". Russian servicemen near Kherson, Ukraine - 20 May 2022, By Olesya Gerasimenko and Kateryna Khinkulova, A convoy of Russian military vehicles heading towards the Donbas region - 23 February 2022, Local residents by a destroyed Russian tank in Sloboda, Chernihiv, Ukraine - 8 May 2022, Banner with the letters Z and V, in support of the Russian military, on a building in Moscow - 19 May 2022, Russian service personnel rehearse for the Victory Day Parade in Moscow - 7 May 2022, President Vladimir Putin visits soldiers wounded during the conflict in Ukraine - 25 May 2022, Pinned down by Russian fire in key front line village. Russia has also turned to mercenaries to bolster its war efforts, deploying fighters from the shadowy Kremlin-linked Wagner group. "But refusing to fight was a difficult decision for him to take. I told him that he was a zombie. Russian rights activists say hundreds, possibly thousands of troops are balking at orders to deploy, to keep fighting, or to remain on the battlefield without rotating out or home. Some Russian soldiers and even whole units are "refusing to fight" in Ukraine, top UK security officials reported today. Emilio Morenatti. Sergey is just one of hundreds of Russian soldiers understood to have been seeking such advice. They didn't even [try to] dissuade us, because we weren't the first," Sergey told the BBC. Paratroopers from the 11th Separate Air Assault Brigade, based outside Ulan-Ude, the capital of the Buryatia region in eastern Siberia, arrived in Ukraines Kherson region on February 24, shortly after Russias invasion began. Russian troops release video as they say they will not fight. But by September that had all changed. Russian soldier Ilya Kaminsky says rank-and-file troops have "absolutely no trust . Discovery Company. The soldier is in the unit, hes not running away anywhere. "I don't want to go [back to Ukraine] to kill and be killed," says Sergey - not his real name - who spent five weeks fighting in Ukraine earlier this year. Such an action would be "premature" without having assessed the harm to the military service he was involved in, the prosecutor said. Because they ignore everything. 2d ago. What is being given to Ukraine by the UK? Honestly, we had to supply ourselves with food. It's not just Ukrainians resisting Vladimir . But there's a more common explanation. Ukrainian service members are seen at the site of fighting with a Russian raiding group in Kyiv on the morning of February 26, 2022, according to Ukrainian service personnel at the scene. The president announced what he called a "partial mobilisation", drafting hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens into the armed forces. But analysts say voluntary recruits and mercenary groups are unlikely to lead to a substantial increase in the number of new soldiers, compared with the numbers that a partial or a full-scale mobilisation would bring. "They are keeping people there because they wanted to leave, refused to fight," the father alleged. But I was thinking, Im still young; at any moment, a piece of shrapnel, a bullet could fly into my head. They forgot their military oaths, the ceremonial promise, their vows of duty to their Fatherland, the board reads. Poland sent the German-made tanks to help Ukraine repel Russian troops and send a "clear and measurable signal of further support", said Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who was visiting Kyiv . Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. They've spent time in the trenches, getting cold and hungry, but when they come back they just get shouted and sworn at by their commanders.". More than 26,000 Russian military personnel have been killed in . While speaking, he blew cigarette smoke into an officers face, who responded by pushing him away. They began to stir and offer up some alternatives when people started specifically saying no, he said. "So many people don't . As they stopped for the evening in an abandoned farm, their commander said: "Well, as you will have worked out by now, this is not a joke. One year from the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine, a Catholic priest recounted how a Ukrainian soldier was spared from being killed by . But, after a few months, he made the decision to sign a two-year professional contract which would also give him a salary. Alexander Avilov / Moskva News Agency. In another incident where Russian soldiers have been accused of refusing to fight in Ukraine, the country's Operational Command South said Sunday in a Facebook post that a Russian military unit deployed in the south would not fight because of a lack of vital supplies such as water. But he stresses that Russian military law does include clauses which allow soldiers to refuse to fight if they don't want to. More than 100 Russian national guardsmen have been fired for refusing to fight in Ukraine, court documents show, in what looks to be the clearest indication yet of dissent among some parts of . The refusenik troops add to Russian commanders headaches as they struggle to replenish spent and exhausted units across the roughly 480-kilometer (300-mile) front line stretching from east of Kharkiv in the northeast down to Kherson in south-central Ukraine. He said he himself had written some 20 complaints and demands for reassignment, but his superior officers had rejected them -- or even tore the papers up completely. Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. A video of the incident that circulated online showed the soldier complaining of poor training, using obscenities, and calling the drills an imitation. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook. Because there are no criminal articles for requesting the termination of a contract based on anti-war beliefs, Krivenko told Current Time. Russian . Andrei Kolesnikov, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment, said the authorities may be worried that a general mobilisation would antagonise large sections of the population that support the special operation. Among them were 12 national guardsmen from Russia's . It's absurd. In Buryatia, where the 11th Brigade is based, dozens of personnel have sought legal assistance from local activists, seeking to break their contracts and get out of service in Ukraine, for various reasons. In a rare public spat involving the Kremlin, 25 National Guard 'refuseniks' defied their . As a result of what I believe were tactical and strategic mistakes made by my commanders and their total disregard for human life I made the decision not to continue in the military operation, one soldier jailed for over a week said in written testimony to prosecutors, which was observed by the Guardian. ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 27, 2023 / 13:45 pm (CNA). appreciated. Within the dense smoke caused by the propaganda of one side or the other, the truth is that there does seem to be a good number of Russian soldiers who have refused to fight in Ukraine. Without a formal . We didnt have normal munitions, no flak jackets or helmets. Many soldiers, therefore, have chosen to be fired or transferred rather than going into the meat grinder, he said. "There are held in pits, tortured and things like that. People in Kyiv are being warned of street fighting and "subversive groups" on the third day of the Russian invasion, with reports of 198 Ukrainians dead nationwide since troops first crossed the . Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine. It doesn't make sense. Russia blaming Ukraine for killing of daughter of Putin ally, Daughter of Putin ally dies when car explodes, Russian media says, 'Russia is not Putin': 76-year-old Russian uses her art to speak out, Russian priest says he's helped 'thousands' of Ukrainian refugees get to Europe, Putin unveils imperialist mission: taking back land he says is Russia's, See rebranded McDonald's restaurants unveiled in Russia, CNN reporter was at Russia's Victory Day parade. Eventually his efforts paid off. When the soldiers of an elite Russian army brigade were told in early April to prepare for a second deployment to Ukraine, fear broke out among the ranks. In particular, conscripts are starting to cancel their contracts. Vladimir Putins forces launched an invasion of Ukraine in February but never formally declared war, meaning soldiers can be fired but shouldnt be jailed, an attorney who has represented reluctant soldiers told the newspaper. Initially he "believed it was right" despite his dad trying to convince him not to go to war, the BBC report said. The soldier, "not wanting to take part in a special . I signed a contract. Reports of Russian soldiers refusing to fight in Ukraine are also mounting. Stas told his father about one particular battle. "Pictures of Russian vehicles running out of fuel and casualties being abandoned where they . Independent Russian media have also been reporting hundreds of cases of soldiers refusing repeat deployments to Ukraine since the beginning of April. "I think that [so many of] our guys died largely because of this. The Institute for the Study of War said on 14 February that the deployment of conscripted servicemen by Russian troops is unlikely to create sufficient offensive potential for a large-scale and rapid mechanised offensive. I didnt think I would quit, but it happened because of my wifes difficult pregnancy, when I asked for a delay until after she gave birth, a third soldier told Current Time in a VK message. This is not our war. "But he said he was going. Troops from the Russian so-called Cossack Detachment are refusing to take part in offensive operations due to Russian forces' heavy losses near Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast. Several lawyers and human rights activists the BBC spoke to said they had been regularly offering advice to men trying to avoid returning to Ukraine. Why wasn't it done?". The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Once again, we have changed their names. The latest as of 7.15 a.m. As Russia has faced a surprisingly effective resistance from Ukraine, there have been reports of low soldier morale and chaos among the commanding ranks. "So off he went to Ukraine. "Some soldiers, under the . Army commanders try to intimidate contract soldiers into staying with their units, according to Russian human rights lawyer Alexei Tabalov. There are no legal grounds to start a criminal case if a soldier refuses to fight while on Russian territory.. As casualties have mounted, so have Ukrainian officials' efforts to appeal directly to the Russian people, saying they are being lied to about a war Moscow still calls a "special operation . Timofei Rozhanskiy is a correspondent in Kyiv for Current Time, the Russian-language network led by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA. Ukrainians have been asked to avoid going near windows or on balconies and be . The soldier was a serving officer in the Russian army when Mr Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine on February 23. Many of the newly mobilised troops were quick to complain that they were being sent to a war zone without sufficient equipment or adequate training. Hundreds were discharged after refusing to take part in the invasion, the Guardian previously reported. The soldier's testimony said war-weary soldiers were urged by superiors to return to the fight. On 15 February, Ukraines Defence Intelligence reported that Russias losses were the largest since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. "He said the [Russian] soldiers had been given no cover; there was no intelligence gathering; no preparation. 27-year-old Chinese man struggles to find job because he l King Charles to evict Harry and Meghan from Frogmore Cottage so he can give it to Andrew, 'Elvis' star Austin Butler was rushed to ER after 'body just started shutting down', Woke Chicago mayor loses re-election bid as city battles crime epidemic, King Charles evicting Harry, Meghan from Frogmore Cottage, giving to Andrew, Hoda Kotbs lengthy Today show absence caused by family health matter, Ed Sheerans wife, Cherry Seaborn, was diagnosed with tumor during pregnancy, Heroic bus driver saves student from passing car, Savannah Guthrie Rushed Out Of Today After Testing Positive For COVID-19 During Live Broadcast, Meghan Markle, Prince Harry have first night out since bombshell 'Spare' released. "You've got relatives there. Moscow's war is unjust, but there's no moral obligation for soldiers to refuse to fight. President Vladimir Putin promised that only professional soldiers would take part in his "special military operation.". Then I got a text message saying he and four other officers had been put in a basement. It's not a war of liberation.' The BBC has been speaking to one such soldier. Im warning you, this is a final offer, he is heard telling the soldiers. CNN in Russia 10 videos. This story has been shared 102,045 times. But that means that - while his letter of refusal to fight was accepted - there are no guarantees he won't be sent back to Ukraine during his service period. Ukrainian soldiers move on the road in the freed territory in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 12, 2022. At another moment, he said, unit commanders ordered a squad of five soldiers to try to seize a nearby settlement defended by up to 200 Ukrainian soldiers. But you cannot force people to fight.". Its members have been deployed in the Donetsk area and are supposed to take control of the defense line until March 5, he added. Each of our interviewees had dealt with dozens of cases and believed those soldiers were also sharing advice with their colleagues. Command post guard duty? But, he had been sufficiently worried about his unit's reaction to his refusal that he decided to seek legal advice. Troops from the Russian so-called Cossack Detachment are refusing to take part in offensive operations due to Russian forces heavy losses near Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast. He revealed to his father what had happened to him in detention: how a "different group" of Russian soldiers had tried to force him to fight. A group of desperate Russian soldiers have issued an open letter by way of video to despotic President Vladimir Putin. In January, Sergey was sent near the border with Ukraine for what he was told would be military drills. Russian forces have significantly reduced activity in the Vuhledar area due to the mass refusal of their troops to go on the offensive, spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Tavriiskyi District forces, Oleksiy Dmytrashkivskyi, said on Feb. 27. . Artillery sentry duty? Early in the war, Kaminsky said, commanders ordered the brigade to defend a line opposite Ukrainian forces that stretched up to 64 kilometers in length (40 miles) about four times what the brigades troop strength could reasonably protect. A month later - 24 February, the day Russia launched its invasion - he was told to cross the border. He refused so they beat him over the head several times with a pistol. Back in his living room, Sergei tells me that what happened to Stas in Ukraine has brought them closer together. Finance chiefs at a Group of 20 conference in India this weekend issued a joint statement condemning Moscow for its war in Ukraine, with only China and Russia declining to sign. 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