Vladimir Putin’s army is facing a new crisis, after demoralised soldiers disobeyed orders and refused to fight.
The latest incident comes just weeks after paratroopers and marines refused to storm Ukrainian positions on the left bank of the Dnipro.
The mutinies have shocked Putin’s generals, who are finalising their plans for a new summer offensive they hope will result in victory for Moscow.
Putin’s troops have sustained a horrific number of casualties since the beginning of hostilities in February 2022.
Russian commanders have shown scant regard for the wellbeing and safety of their troops, viewing them as cannon fodder for the daily “meat grinder”.
New figures released by France’s government suggest that Moscow’s army has sustained half a million casualties in just over two years of combat.
Around 150,000 of these have been killed – this is ten times the number of Soviet soldiers who died in Afghanistan during a decade of fighting.
Putin’s troops have often complained about the callous behaviour of their senior officers and of being poorly equipped and led. This has prompted many to disobey orders and down arms in protest at their treatment.
In a new video posted to social media channels, soldiers from the 28th regiment of the 70th division of the Dnipro group painted a grim picture of life in the Russian trenches.
They said they refused to “go and die” on another pointless combat mission and had disobeyed orders.
“We didn’t go on the mission,” they said. “Having served for 11 months, we were not given a single vacation or anything. We went on missions and were wounded and were not given leave due to injury.
“Now we have gathered six of us to appeal to you, so that if something happens to us, we will not be ‘lost’ later. Because our leadership doesn’t treat us very well.”
Russia‘s generals take a dim view of mutineers and are reported to be executing dissenters.
In November last year White House officials claimed they had obtained information that Russia was executing its own soldiers for disobeying orders.
Reports have also emerged of Putin’s army deploying Chechen fighters as so-called barrier troops to prevent mass desertions from the front.
Even Russia‘s elite forces have refused orders to fight. Paratroopers and marines stationed near Krynky in Kherson province recently refused to storm positions held by Ukraine‘s army on the left bank of the Dnipro river.