Russia is planning to send newly mobilized recruits to the front after just days of training or none at all, rights activists said around a week into the country’s “partial” military mobilization for the battle in Ukraine.
The Perviy Otdel (First Department) rights group mentioned in a post on Telegram on Tuesday that, “New recruits do not participate in exercises, are not examined by the medical commission and do not undergo any training.”
The group mentioned a video published by an unnamed draftee who was called up to fight.
The person in the video says that, “Hello all, the first tank regiment is here. We were officially told that there would be no training before we are sent to the battle zone. The regiment’s commanders confirmed about this. On September 29, we will be sent to Kherson.”
As per the Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, “Perviy Otdel did not shown how widespread such cases are. Russia is aiming to call up 300,000 men to aid its faltering war effort in Ukraine with its partial mobilization.”
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin stipulated that those men will be called from Russia’s pool of some 2 million reservists that have “relevant” military experience.
As per the report by U.S. think tank RAND, “But only 10% of this pool of reservists have completed refresher training since their initial mandatory military service, which means many draftees are likely in need of training before being deployed to the front.”
Sending men ill-prepared for war into Ukraine will mean a sharp spike in Russian deaths on the frontlines, military analysts said.
Initial footage of Russia’s mobilization has shown scores of ageing men subjected to poor conditions as they await being sent to Ukraine.
Videos posted online Monday showed men sleeping without beds in army barracks as well as other footage appearing to show recruits being told to buy their own medical supplies.