The Russian defense ministry didnt respond to the Guardians request for comment. Did you encounter any technical issues? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. Many soldiers, therefore, have chosen to be fired or transferred rather than going into the meat grinder, he said. "But refusing to fight was a difficult decision for him to take. Id rather bury you on the front line, on the line of defense, than give up my position, he said, describing the sentiments of his commanders. "We do not have any camps or incarceration facilities, or the like [for Russian soldiers]," President Putin insisted earlier this month. 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. Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. In another incident, Sergey says he had to overtake comrades trapped inside a burning vehicle in front of him. 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. In his unit of 50 people, 10 were killed and 10 others wounded. For that they sent my son to a detention centre. Why Russian Soldiers Are Refusing To Fight In The War On Ukraine. The enemy has somewhat reduced its activity for the fourth day, he said. My daughter was born three months ago. The troops are getting exhausted they wont be able to keep this up for a long period.. In a rare public spat involving the Kremlin, 25 National Guard 'refuseniks' defied their . Kaminsky said discontent had been building in the unit for weeks, if not months. Their identities have been protected by the BBC. Missing In Action: A Russian Soldier's Mother Desperately Seeks Answers, Vox Pop: Muscovites On How Russia's Isolation Affects Daily Life. "He told me he had refused to lead his men to a certain death," Oxana tells me. Conscripts could fill some of the gaps, but they will be poorly trained. But there's a more common explanation. Sergei (not his real name) says his son was beaten with a pistol for refusing to go back to the frontlines, There are reports of mobilised Russian troops locked in cellars and basements for refusing to fight in Ukraine, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. "I'm morally exhausted. In . 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. Timofei Rozhanskiy is a correspondent in Kyiv for Current Time, the Russian-language network led by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA. Why wasn't it done?". Nearly all . Jan 27, 2023. The Russian authorities dismiss reports of disillusioned soldiers and detention centres as fake news. Russian state media aired footage of blitzed buildings and abandoned streets in Bakhmut , the eastern city where Ukrainian forces have been . "So off he went to Ukraine. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, Quote from the General Staff: "Troops from the so-called volunteer Cossack Detachment, attached to the 155th Marine Brigade of the Russian Pacific Fleet, are refusing to continue to take part in offensive operations due to the failure of the offensive and significant personnel losses near Vuhledar.". 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. The attack is doubly unjust. 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. Pointing to Russias military laws, Benyash said it would be more difficult for soldiers to refuse to fight if Russia were to declare a full-scale war. For some Russians, refusing to return to the front line may be a moral stand. He and several others who'd decided to refuse had their guns taken off them and were put under armed guard.". Their official status is missing in action. Russian . In Kononov's case, court documents say that he pleaded guilty to evading military service and that he testified he wanted to take a temporary break from fighting 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. 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. July 20, 2022 16:08 GMT. ET Saturday: A curfew in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, has been extended from 5 pm until 8 am every day At least 198 Ukrainians, including three children, have been . While the exact number of soldiers refusing to fight remains unclear, such stories illustrate what military experts and western governments say is one of Russias biggest obstacles in Ukraine: a severe shortage of infantry soldiers. We arent officially in a state of war, so they could not force me to go.. Of the 78 soldiers from Kaminskys unit who have disobeyed orders, some have been ordered held in a makeshift brig for days, he said. There are reports of mobilised Russian troops locked in cellars and basements for refusing to fight in Ukraine. But from our own side.". They began to stir and offer up some alternatives when people started specifically saying no, he said. 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. "Later I was told that the building they were in had been shelled and that all five men were missing. The BBC has been speaking to one such soldier. "He said the [Russian] soldiers had been given no cover; there was no intelligence gathering; no preparation. April 16, 2022 17:49 GMT. Russia struggles to replenish its troops in Ukraine. The soldier's testimony said war-weary soldiers were urged by superiors to return to the fight. 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". The soldier, "not wanting to take part in a special . 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. Frank Gardner looks at what lies ahead as winter arrives in Ukraine. 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 . Human rights activist Sergei Krivenko says he is not aware of any prosecutions of those refusing to return to the front. All Rights Reserved. A Russian court sentenced a 24-year-old professional soldier to five years in prison for refusing to fight in Ukraine, officials have said. Many of the units that are supposed to train conscripts are fighting themselves, Lee said. 'I Had To Refuse So I Could Stay Alive' Russia blaming Ukraine for killing of daughter of Putin ally. They made him lie on the ground and told him to count to ten. In all, 78 soldiers including Kaminsky openly challenged his orders, and demanded to be either sent home or reassigned, he said. If no ones willing to take the offers from the brigade commanders, I wont detain you. 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. More than 26,000 Russian military personnel have been killed in . In January, Sergey was sent near the border with Ukraine for what he was told would be military drills. There are no legal grounds to start a criminal case if a soldier refuses to fight while on Russian territory.. A video of the incident that circulated online showed the soldier complaining of poor training, using obscenities, and calling the drills an imitation. Putin needs to make a decision regarding mobilisation in the coming weeks, said Rob Lee, a military analyst. His unit moved on through the Ukrainian countryside, but there was a clear lack of strategy, he says. 'I'm Warning You, This Is A Final Offer' He's changed completely. Im tired. Argument | Michael Walzer. The soldier is in the unit, hes not running away anywhere. They were continually shelled, he says, both when moving and when parked overnight. I understand everything, of course. Stas was sent back to Russia. I understood that I had to refuse so I could stay alive, he said. Soldiers from Ukraines Special Operations Forces and the 72nd Separate Mechanised Brigade destroyed pieces of Russian equipment and captured two Russian servicemen near Vuhledar on 23 February. Without a formal . Separately, a military tribunal said it sentenced Kandarov to five years behind bars for evading military service during mobilisation for more than a month. But you have until 6 p.m. today. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. President Vladimir Putin promised that only professional soldiers would take part in his "special military operation.". The president announced what he called a "partial mobilisation", drafting hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens into the armed forces. Heavy street fighting against Russian troops was underway in Kyiv as officials urged locals to take immediate shelter. 2023 Cable News Network. 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. AP. I told him: 'Better to take it. A Russian soldier was sentenced in July for refusing to fight in the Ukraine war. "I can see that the war continues, it is not going away," he told the BBC. 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. Journalists fight on their own frontline. Some Russian soldiers and even whole units are "refusing to fight" in Ukraine, top UK security officials reported today. Among them were 12 national guardsmen from Russia's . I have served for five years in the army. 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. The private then pushed the officer in the chest. Ukrainians have been asked to avoid going near windows or on balconies and be . This is one of many reported incidents where Russian soldiers have been accused of refusing to take up arms in Ukraine. When his son was sent to fight in Ukraine, Sergei begged him not to go. Anybody want it? the commander, a lieutenant colonel identified only by his surname Agafonov, can be heard telling the soldiers. But without conscript battalions, Russia could soon struggle to hold the territory it currently controls in Ukraine, especially as Ukraine receives better equipment from Nato, he said. A month later - 24 February, the day Russia launched its invasion - he was told to cross the border. It wouldn't cost much to equip us. Then I got a text message saying he and four other officers had been put in a basement. But, after a few months, he made the decision to sign a two-year professional contract which would also give him a salary. There are reports of mobilised Russian troops locked in cellars and basements for refusing to fight in Ukraine. If we had moved gradually, if we had checked the roads for mines many losses could have been avoided.". They just don't care. 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. A Russian soldier who refused to fight in the war in Ukraine was allegedly beaten and locked up by his own comrades, according to a report. I dont regret it one bit. A senior US defense official said Russian volunteers are refusing to go into . 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. The soldier, not wanting to take part in a special military operation, did not report for duty in May 2022, said the press service on Thursday for courts in the region of Bashkortostan in the southern Urals. The Ukrainian military on Friday reported significant fighting near Ivankiv, about 40 miles north west of Kyiv, as Russian forces apparently tried to advance on the capital from the north. They haven't been seen for five months. Daughter of Putin ally dies when . As Russia's forces run out of food and fuel, some h They said no remains had been found. For many Russian soldiers, the war in Ukraine is one they don't want to fight. A group of Russian soldiers recently sent Vladimir Putin a video complaining about "being sent to the slaughter" and begging for more military support in . Read about our approach to external linking. A lawyer told Sergey and two like-minded colleagues to return their arms and go back to their unit's headquarters - where they should file a letter explaining that they were "morally and psychologically exhausted" and could not continue fighting in Ukraine. I didn't look back.". "We're on the same wavelength now," Sergei tells me. 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 . The bosses response was: We dont care about your problems, go ahead and quit. But even before that, there are many reports from our intelligence officers, who work quite successfully, about what is going at the enemy both in the rear and on the front line there are very frequent refusals to participate in hostilities., Read also: Russians pushing for breakthrough near Vuhledar, but unlikely to succeed, says UK intelligence. In conversations with Current Time via the Russian social media giant VK, several soldiers from the brigade disputed the circumstances behind their inclusion on the wall of shame. Russian troops sabotaging their own equipment and refusing orders in Ukraine, UK spy chief says Published Thu, Mar 31 2022 7:30 AM EDT Updated Thu, Mar 31 2022 4:40 PM EDT Chloe Taylor @ChloeTaylor141 This is not our war. Produced by Will Vernon. After that, I wont look at any new offers.. The announcement triggered an exodus of men from Russia, with many fleeing to neighbouring countries including Armenia, Georgia and Kazakhstan. It's not just Ukrainians resisting Vladimir . "There are held in pits, tortured and things like that. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. A Russian soldier has been sentenced for refusing to fight in the war in Ukraine. Three days of duty? Before joining Current Times Moscow bureau in 2019, Rozhanskiy worked for the independent Russian television channel TV Rain. The NY Times published a story on this topic today titled "Russia's New Offensive Sends Conscripts Into the Teeth of Ukraine's Lines." "Every day, sometimes more than once a day, small groups come forward and try to take our positions," said one of the Ukrainian soldiers who participated in the fight, and who asked to be identified only by his nickname, Diesel, for security reasons. Ukrainian soldiers move on the road in the freed territory in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 12, 2022. 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 . CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reports on the conflictin Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin touts success, yet some ofhis soldiers refuse to fight. Sergei and Stas are not the real names of this father and son. I still havent seen her. They made him lie on the ground and told him to count to ten. Under Russian military rules, troops who refuse to fight in Ukraine can face dismissal but cannot be prosecuted, said Mikhail Benyash, a lawyer who has been advising soldiers who choose that option. We were illegally jailed.. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 2023 RFE/RL, Inc. All Rights Reserved. By Robert Coalson. "You've got relatives there. "It was a difficult decision for him to take. Brigade has suffered "extremely high casualties" while fighting in Ukraine. "We were like blind kittens. A Russian soldier who refused to continue fighting in Ukraine, he was beaten until his face was . April 7, 2022. On 15 February, Ukraines Defence Intelligence reported that Russias losses were the largest since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. 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 by September that had all changed. 'I'd rather go to jail than fight in Ukraine', Surgeons operate on baby in Kyiv blackout, Station master arrested after dozens killed in Greece train crash, Covid origin likely China lab incident - FBI chief, Ukraine war casts shadow over India's G20 ambitions, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip, India anti-corruption crusader fighting to clear his name, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. Although Sergey does not want to return to the front line, he does want to complete his outstanding military service in Russia to avoid any unforeseen consequences. 2. The soldier was a serving officer in the Russian army when Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. Images by Anton Chicherov. Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world. A Russian court sentenced Marsel Kandarov to five years in prison for refusing to take part in the special military operation. He bombarded military officials, prosecutors and investigators with appeals for help. 2d ago. What's he waiting for? We had no food, no water, he said. Critics have said many mobilised men hardly had any battlefield experience and have received little training before being sent to the front. Read also: UK intelligence estimates Russian losses near Vuhledar. One consequence of the Kremlin refusing to declare war on Kyiv - the regime insists that its invasion is a "special military operation", a distinct legal status - is that its options for forcing servicemen to the front are more limited. They would be looking at time in prison.. "I think that [so many of] our guys died largely because of this. Nearly five months into the largest war in Europe since World War II, a growing number of Russian soldiers like Kaminsky are refusing to fight, demanding to return home, or outright not going to Ukraine in the first place. The men, who belonged to the key headquarters of the Pskov . 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. It soon became clear that not everyone was onboard with it. The latest as of 7.15 a.m. "Pictures of Russian vehicles running out of fuel and casualties being abandoned where they . We were fed once a day at lunchtime. He had helped oversee fighting in eastern Ukraine. Once again, we have changed their names. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. 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. During wartime, rules are totally different. Russian authorities quietly stepped up their efforts to recruit new soldiers as it became clear that a quick victory in Ukraine was unattainable. 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. 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. Sergey says he is traumatised by his experience in Ukraine. A Russian soldier's service card was stamped "traitor" for refusing . Russian soldier Ilya Kaminsky says rank-and-file troops have "absolutely no trust . 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. The discontent in Kaminskys 11th Brigade is not an isolated case, and there are indications that Russian commanders are trying different tactics to keep the problem from spiraling out of control: for example, publicly shaming soldiers who are refusing to fight. One commander in northern Russia requested a criminal case be brought against his subordinate who would not return to Ukraine, but a military prosecutor refused to proceed, according to documents seen by the BBC. And that means he cant be prosecuted for desertion or going AWOL. Its members have been deployed in the Donetsk area and are supposed to take control of the defense line until March 5, he added. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much It's absurd. By Timofei Rozhanskiy. Discovery Company. 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. . Im warning you, this is a final offer, he is heard telling the soldiers. 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. 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. "They beat him and then they took him outside as if they were going to shoot him. A court in the Russian city of Ufa has sentenced a 24-year-old corporal to five years in prison for refusing to fight in Ukraine. I will serve my remaining time and then I am out of here, he said. Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine. Kononov said he stopped showing up at his unit and, instead, spent time with his friend at his home. And while the current status of the conflict gives Russian soldiers a legal path to refuse participation, some soldiers have complained that it has also led to them not being adequately cared for. "Inclined toward treason, lies . We drove around it and on, firing as we went. His superiors argued that he should not be given the monetary compensation of up to 2,500 that wounded Russians are entitled to by law because his injury took place on Russian soil meaning it did not fall under the rules of Russias special military operation. A Russian soldier has been sentenced for refusing to fight in the war in Ukraine. But then someone said they'd take my son to work in the storeroom. Albert Sakhibgareev was sent near the Ukrainian border in early February for "training exercises," the . For four and a half months, Corporal Ilya Kaminsky and his fellow soldiers from the 11th Separate Air Assault Brigade have waged war as part of the grinding Russian military offensive that has slowly pushed Ukrainian troops back in eastern Ukraine. All asked that their names be withheld for fear of further punishment or retaliation by commanders. Army commanders try to intimidate contract soldiers into staying with their units, according to Russian human rights lawyer Alexei Tabalov. He refused. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here. 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. ", Stas was a serving officer when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February. (Reuters Photo) Russian soldiers fighting the war in Ukraine are in disarray and crying as they are asked to "fire at . Brigade commanders ask who wants to guard the second gunners unit. 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. . Ukraine's leader pledged Friday to push for victory in 2023 as he and other Ukrainians marked the somber anniversary of the Russian invasion that upended their lives and Europe's security. He was soon transferred to Belgorod, a Russian city close to the border with Ukraine, where he has been stationed since. VLADIMIR Putin's demoralised and disillusioned troops are fleeing the war in Ukraine and surrendering without a fight, reports claim. .. 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. Belarus allowed Russia to stage part of the invasion from its . Im supposed to be ready for any situation; this war, this special operation, one soldier wrote. ", "We do not have any problems with soldiers leaving combat positions," the Kremlin leader continued. 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. Russian troops also lost territory in the southern Kherson region as well as the Lyman transport hub in eastern Ukraine. "They beat him and then they took him outside as if they were going to . "In these months [of compulsory military service] that I have left, anything - including the worst - could happen. Russias troops in Ukraine are largely made up of contract soldiers: volunteer personnel who sign fixed-term contracts for service. Boris Johnson's cabinet received an update from a senior national security official on Tuesday morning. Because there are no criminal articles for requesting the termination of a contract based on anti-war beliefs, Krivenko told Current Time. It is, first of all, a classic example of military aggression; it is a war without a just cause. The soldier, along with several others who decided not to take part in the fight anymore, put his refusal in writing. Some troops are refusing orders, walking away from military bases or crossing the border into Ukraine and switching sides, media reports show. I told him that he was a zombie. But the soldier later discussed with his father what would happen if he refused to fight. Read about our approach to external linking. At the beginning of April, Sergey was sent back over the border to a camp on the Russian side. Thousands of Russian vehicles running out of here, he said lost territory in the Russian when. To the front cover ; there was a difficult decision for him to count to ten intelligence that... 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