.. Advertisement .. Russian Soldier Brutally Thrashed For Refusing To Fight In Ukraine War: Report, Arrested AAP Ministers Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain Quit Delhi Cabinet, Nithyananda's 'Republic Of Kailasa' At UN Meet. Despite speculation beforehand, Putin did not formally declare war on Ukraine during his Victory Day speech on 9 May. "But refusing to fight was a difficult decision for him to take. Once again, we have changed their names. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook. He was soon transferred to Belgorod, a Russian city close to the border with Ukraine, where he has been stationed since. 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 . 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 . It is unfair, I am fighting in this war just as the others in Ukraine, risking my life, the soldier said. Russian paratroopers. Homesick. So, they beat him over the head several times with a pistol. "Inclined toward treason, lies . "In these months [of compulsory military service] that I have left, anything - including the worst - could happen. It soon became clear that not everyone was onboard with it. The soldiers testimony said war-weary soldiers were urged by superiors to return to the fight. Troops had been withdrawn from northern Ukraine and appeared to be regrouping for an assault in the east. The range of experience varies. 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. A senior US defense official said Russian volunteers are refusing to go into . I thought a long time about it and came to the decision. In July, the father of a Russian soldier told The Insider that troops were being detained or moved to a detention center in the occupied Luhansk region if they attempted to leave their posts. "You've got relatives there. "The commanders' aim is to keep the soldiers down there. Second, the conduct of the war by Russian forces violates the most . Video, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story, Ed Sheeran says wife developed tumour in pregnancy, Survivors describe 'nightmarish seconds' as trains crashed, Bieber cancels remaining Justice world tour dates, Daily walk prevents one in 10 early deaths - study, Trump lashes out at Murdoch over vote fraud case, Uranium particles enriched to 83.7% found in Iran, Why the lab-leak theory is being taken seriously, Finland starts construction of Russia border fence. Russian military regulations provide some legal justification and procedures for soldiers who disobey orders, according to Sergei Krivenko, a rights activist -- particularly for those who state they are anti-war, or pacifists. Fewer and fewer Russian servicemen want to fight for the Kremlin's invading plans. These people are ready for anything. Anyone? He believed it was right. "I can see that the war continues, it is not going away," he told the BBC. Now, at least four want their superiors punished for the seemingly illegal arrests, according to the newspaper. Their identities have been protected by the BBC. Deployed to Ukraine in July, Andrei was placed in detention for refusing to carry out orders. Read also: UK intelligence estimates Russian losses near Vuhledar. 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. Belarus allowed Russia to stage part of the invasion from its . The soldier is in the unit, hes not running away anywhere. There are reports of mobilised Russian troops locked in cellars and basements for refusing to fight in Ukraine. Dmitris refusal to fight highlights some of the military difficulties the Russian army has faced as a result of the Kremlins political decision not to formally declare war on Ukraine preferring instead to describe the invasion, which will soon reach its fourth month, as a special military operation. Russias troops in Ukraine are largely made up of contract soldiers: volunteer personnel who sign fixed-term contracts for service. Many of us simply did not want to go back, said Dmitri, a member of the unit who asked not to be identified with his real name. Each of our interviewees had dealt with dozens of cases and believed those soldiers were also sharing advice with their colleagues. Russian . Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron! Kaminsky said discontent had been building in the unit for weeks, if not months. According to the head of his military commandant's office, Kononov was found at his place of residence with a friend after a search. But, he had been sufficiently worried about his unit's reaction to his refusal that he decided to seek legal advice. During wartime, rules are totally different. A Russian court sentenced Marsel Kandarov to five years in prison for refusing to take part in the special military operation. 17 Russian soldiers were reportedly detained, Russian military unit deployed in the south would not figh, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. Produced by Will Vernon. 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. Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world. 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. But by September that had all changed. And that, unfortunately, life would prove that.". They don't care about the life of a soldier; whats more important is his position and rank, Kaminsky said. The men, who belonged to the key headquarters of the Pskov . I will serve my remaining time and then I am out of here, he said. "As an officer he understood that if they went ahead, they wouldn't get out alive. The Insider. Russia lacks sufficient ground units with contract soldiers for a sustainable rotation. "This is all nonsense and fake claims and there is nothing to back them up with. There was no basic hygiene, the soldier said in the testimony, according to the Guardian. The soldier, "not wanting to take part in a . Some Russian soldiers and even whole units are "refusing to fight" in Ukraine, top UK security officials reported today. Some Russian troops are refusing to return to fight in Ukraine because of their experiences on the front line at the start of the invasion, according to Russian human rights lawyers and activists. 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 . Read about our approach to external linking. Missing In Action: A Russian Soldier's Mother Desperately Seeks Answers, Vox Pop: Muscovites On How Russia's Isolation Affects Daily Life. 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. They made him lie on the ground and told him to count to ten. But after a certain adaptation period, our men fight brilliantly.". For that they sent my son to a detention centre. Born in Russia, he graduated from St. Petersburg State University and also received film and video production training at Bard College in New York. The private then pushed the officer in the chest. Sergey was told that returning to the unit was important because simply leaving could be interpreted as desertion, which can result in a two-year sentence in a disciplinary battalion. He believes his commanders had planned to capture strongholds and key cities very quickly - and had calculated that the Ukrainians would simply surrender. Soldiers are refusing to fire artillery on civilians until they clear the area. A Russian court has sentenced a 24-year-old professional soldier to five years in prison for refusing to fight in Ukraine, officials said Thursday. Russian authorities quietly stepped up their efforts to recruit new soldiers as it became clear that a quick victory in Ukraine was unattainable. According to Kaminsky, the pressure ended up working in part: As of July 16, 50 of the 78 soldiers who had demanded to return to their home base had relented. He managed to contact his mother, Oxana, back in Russia to tell her what was going on. He heard of Russian servicemen so inexperienced that they "did not know how to shoot and couldn't tell one end of a mortar from another". They ignore any requests. The human rights activist said Kononov may be sent to serve in Ukraine again, explaining that the punishment means it will be even more difficult for him to achieve early dismissal. 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. Russia struggles to replenish its troops in Ukraine. Here's what he saw, CNN reporter returns to Russia for first time since January, Kremlin to showcase its military power in May 9th parade. In particular, conscripts are starting to cancel their contracts. 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. I told him: 'Better to take it. It's not a war of liberation'," the man told the BBC. Journalists fight on their own frontline. He simply declares that he has anti-war convictions. Many Russian soldiers would rather be dismissed or transferred than fight in Ukraine. There are no legal grounds to start a criminal case if a soldier refuses to fight while on Russian territory.. Almost immediately his unit found itself under attack. He bombarded military officials, prosecutors and investigators with appeals for help. The Russian defense ministry didnt respond to the Guardians request for comment. The bosses response was: We dont care about your problems, go ahead and quit. Because there are no criminal articles for requesting the termination of a contract based on anti-war beliefs, Krivenko told Current Time. 02:32. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. 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. He told me his face was covered in blood," the father said while speaking to the outlet. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much But from our own side.". Servicemen fire a 120mm mortar towards Russian positions at the frontline near Bakhmut, Ukraine. I told him: 'Better to take it. A group of desperate Russian soldiers have issued an open letter by way of video to despotic President Vladimir Putin. 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. The way my son was treated wasn't only illegal, it was inhuman.". He refused so they beat him over the head several times with a pistol. ", "We do not have any problems with soldiers leaving combat positions," the Kremlin leader continued. The soldier, along with several others who decided not to take part in the fight anymore, put his refusal in writing. Russian state media aired footage of blitzed buildings and abandoned streets in Bakhmut , the eastern city where Ukrainian forces have been . They just don't care. 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. Im warning you, this is a final offer, he is heard telling the soldiers. A stamp that was purportedly placed in the military-service booklet of one soldier who refused to serve in Ukraine. The Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta reported Friday that Russian officials have detained contract soldiers who refuse to fight in special detention camps in occupied Ukraine. 2d ago. Conscripts could fill some of the gaps, but they will be poorly trained. 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. 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. All his bravado has gone. All asked that their names be withheld for fear of further punishment or retaliation by commanders. "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. "We rushed forward with short overnight stays, without trenches, without reconnaissance. President Vladimir Putin had on September 21 ordered a mobilisation of hundreds of thousands of Russians to fight in Ukraine, sparking protests and an exodus of eligible men from the country. They haven't been seen for five months. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Other units include troops from private military companies like Vagner, or specialized, semiautonomous units overseen by Chechnyas strongman leader, Ramzan Kadyrov. Later that month he received an order to return to Ukraine - but told his commander that he was not prepared to go. He said he would put his refusal in writing. Putin's army continues its full-scale aggression in Ukraine. A group of Russian soldiers are suing the army after they were fired for refusing to fight in Ukraine. Hawara: 'What happened was horrific and barbaric', The people who want you to believe the Ukraine war is fake. Russian forces were driven out of much of the northeastern Kharkiv region in early September by a Ukrainian counter-offensive that allowed Kyiv to retake thousands of square kilometres of territory. In . They would be looking at time in prison.. Brigade has suffered "extremely high casualties" while fighting in Ukraine. The code has been copied to your clipboard. According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the occupiers are not able to resolve problems with manning their units. Source: cnnespanol All news articles on 2023-02-28 You may like. 2. "They beat him and then they took him outside as if they were going to . Its members have been deployed in the Donetsk area and are supposed to take control of the defense line until March 5, he added. What is being given to Ukraine by the UK? Unit commanders then staged an intervention. 'I'm Warning You, This Is A Final Offer' Some Russian troops are refusing to return to fight in Ukraine because of their experiences on the front line at the start of the invasion, according to Russian human rights lawyers and activists. R ussian troops have destroyed a concrete dam built in Ukraine's Kherson Region in 2014 to cut off water to Crimea, the RIA news agency quoted the governor of Russian-annexed Crimea Sergei . RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. There have been an estimated 140 soldiers put behind bars in eastern Ukraine, with some allegedly guarded by pro-Moscow mercenaries in a military base surrounded by land mines, the Guardian reported. Belarus, a close ally of Russia, has supported its eastern neighbour in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.Before the start of the offensive, Belarus allowed the Russian Armed Forces to perform weeks-long military drills on its territory; however, the Russian troops did not exit the country after they were supposed to finish. Reports from Russia said authorities would call up 300,000 people with "relevant" skills or military experience. Boris Johnson's cabinet received an update from a senior national security official on Tuesday morning. Not from the opposing side. But then someone said they'd take my son to work in the storeroom. He told me his face was covered in blood. More than 550,000 soldiers from Putin's failing army have been killed or injured so badly in Ukraine that they are no longer able to fight, according to Minusrus. But you have until 6 p.m. today. "He said it was my choice. He said the "Russian invasion of Ukraine has triggered the most massive violations of human rights" being witnessed in the world today. Sergey's complaints about lack of equipment have also emerged in phone conversations alleged to be between Russian soldiers and their families, intercepted and posted online by the Ukrainian security services. Russia announced the mobilisation of 300,000 men in late September after suffering battlefield defeats at the hands of Ukrainian forces. A Russian soldier who refused to continue fighting in Ukraine, he was beaten until his face was . This is not our war. As Russia's forces run out of food and fuel, some h They said no remains had been found. 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. Of video to despotic President Vladimir Putin the commanders ' aim is to keep the soldiers down there soldier in... 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