We hear a lot about what is happening in Ukraine…..Ukraine attacks Russia….Russia bombs a village…..NATO sends arms and stuff and the US sends money…..those are the sensational headlines these days but what is really happening in Ukraine under the headlines?
I know they are having a problem with people avoiding the draft but is the problem deeper than that?
It appears that desertions are becoming a major problem in the Ukrainian army….
The Ukrainian prosecutor’s office has opened 51,000 cases of desertion through the first nine months of 2024. The number of soldiers abandoning their posts is likely to double last year’s total.
The Times of London reported data from the Ukrainian government showing that “51,000 criminal cases were initiated for desertion and abandonment of a military unit between January and September of this year.” El Pais previously noted that 45,000 Ukrainians were being prosecuted for desertion from the start of the year through August. Al-Jazeera says the number is at least 30,000 desertions.
At the start of the year, Kiev was estimated to have between 500,000 and 800,000 active-duty soldiers and an additional 300,000 reservists. The Ukrainians have also sustained casualties fighting to defend from Russian advances and amid Kiev’s Kursk invasion.
Kiev has struggled to fill its ranks with fresh soldiers, leading Ukraine to drop its conscription age from 27 to 25. As Kiev is still facing manpower shortages, American politicians are pushing Ukraine to drop draft age to 18. Ukraine has also resorted to allowing prisoners to leave jail if they join the military
One Ukrainian who deserted told the Times that prison was a better option than the military because “at least in prison, you know when you will be able to leave.”
The number of Ukrainians that Kiev is prosecuting for desertion has significantly increased throughout the war. In 2022, the number was 9,000, and it had more than doubled to 24,000 last year.
(libertarianinstitute.org)
What seems to be the problem? (he asked)
They believe the war’s future looks bleak due to insufficient replacements. “Why are we retreating? Because we have no rotations, we don’t rest, and we are demoralized,” explains Shkoda, the code name of an officer from an anti-drone unit in the 46th Brigade.
This soldier, like others interviewed last week in this conflict zone, is referring to the growing problem of army deserters. The Ukrainian Attorney General’s Office reported that there have been nearly 100,000 desertions since the start of the war, with more than half occurring this year alone. This represents about 10% of all personnel in the Ukrainian Armed Forces. “I had a friend we called England. He fought throughout the war along the front lines — in Robotine, Soledar, Kherson… He was exhausted, unable to continue, and the commanders didn’t give him with a break. A few days ago, he just left, like that.”
(elpais.com)
If this is the case then it sounds like support for this war is dwindling and the only people that relish the fight is Zelensky and NATO and the MSM why else would this not be reported?
Time for someone to step up and try to hammer out some sort of ceasefire before it is too late….if it is not already.
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
The issue of desertion and refusing to register for conscription has been widely reported here by the BBC. But you have to search for such news reports, as they are way down a list that mainly features Israel/Gaza, and the new Labour government. Ukraine also plays down its own casualty figures, which are estimated here to be almost 100,000 killed, and twice that severely wounded. If this carries on, Ukraine will lose an entire generation of its men. (There are also women fighting at the front for Ukraine, last estimated at close to 10,000)
Best wishes, Pete.
Not much reported over here….MSM avoids any bad news like that. chuq
Hammering out a ceasefire is simple… not rocket science… and this is how it will go down if it happens…. people will sit around a table and in the end Ukraine will cede all the territory it has taken back to Russia…peace will prevail for a short while so that Putin can re-arm and reinforce and then Ukraine will face an ultimatum to come back under Russian rule itself or be invaded again …and after that Poland and the smaller NATO countries who have ever been part of Russia will be attacked, one by one….but no problems because by the time that happens, Trump will have become president of the USA and will have taken us out of NATO….and all of Europe will be ripe for Putin’s military adventuring…. and we will do nothing at all to stop it….and eventually, the Russo-Chinese alliance will become the biggest threat to all the rest of the world….but by that time the rest of the world will be powerless to do anything about it….and that’s the way it is on October 23, 2024.
Seems democrats have been successful in making many believe that “Trump will take us out of NATO” mantra. Trump nor republicans have ever advocated such a disaster. No NATO = a very very weakened USA both militarily and economically. Trump’s threats are to make NATO pony up the $ to sustain NATO and make them participants in their own defense.
Knowing that Republicans of the Trump variety will believe any lie they are told and have no idea of what truth really is after having been subjected to nothing but lies through Faux News and Trump’s continuous stream of them, I do offer the following for consideration in regard to concerns about Trump pulling out of NATO:
Donald Trump has raised the possibility of withdrawing the United States from NATO multiple times. His criticism centers around what he considers unequal burden-sharing among member nations, particularly those not meeting the defense spending target of 2% of GDP. During his presidency, he repeatedly expressed frustration with NATO allies, calling some “delinquent” for not contributing enough to their own defense, especially focusing on countries like Germany. At one point, Trump even stated that NATO was “obsolete” and suggested that the U.S. might not defend European countries if they were attacked【6†source】【7†source】.
In 2023, Trump continued to hint at fundamentally reevaluating NATO’s mission if re-elected, making European allies nervous about U.S. commitment to the alliance. While he has not formally pulled the U.S. out of NATO, his rhetoric has created significant uncertainty, leading Congress to pass legislation requiring Senate approval for any withdrawal【7†source】.
There is ongoing debate about whether Trump’s talk of leaving NATO is a negotiating tactic or a genuine policy objective. However, his remarks have led to concerns about the stability of the alliance, particularly given the geopolitical situation in Europe【8†source】.
Yes, reasonable comments.
No one is taking the US out of NATO….too much cash passing hands. chuq
Putin would have to take on all of NATO and he is not that stupid. chuq
He is also not rational and is apparently somewhat unhinged, so logic does not play here.
Again he is not insane….self-preservation dictates no attacks on NATO for any length of time. chuq
well then Hitler was not insane either…
And Hitler did not have a massive forces to his rear either. chuq
I don’t know what you are talking about but here is a picture of the forces that were behind Hitler at the peak of his reign—-
At the height of Hitler’s power during World War II, particularly around 1943, Nazi Germany’s armed forces, known as the Wehrmacht, were among the most formidable in the world. The Wehrmacht consisted of three main branches: the Heer (army), the Luftwaffe (air force), and the Kriegsmarine (navy).
By 1943, the total strength of the German military was approximately 11 million personnel across all branches. Here’s a breakdown:
In addition, various other organizations, such as the Waffen-SS, a military branch of the SS (Hitler’s elite paramilitary organization), numbered around 900,000 men by the war’s end.
These forces were spread across multiple fronts—Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North Africa, and various occupied territories. Germany’s ability to maintain such large forces was a result of its extensive mobilization and the conscription of millions of men, including youth and older adults in the later years of the war.
Ceasefire ? When Russia has taken over the entire Ukraine. That’s when. Then comes the oppression and the war against any Ukranian memory of their nationhood. Strange that everyone is blamaming everyone except Russia for the horror.
You got that one right…That is the only time when there will be a cease fire…when Putin and Company have total control of Ukraine again… and after that every other little country that at some point in history was part of the Soviet Bloc whether willingly or not.
No one is blaming anyone…my point is they are running out of bodies to throw in the grinder. Maybe time to think about an alternative. chuq
If Trump wins and takes office, he will hammer out a ceasefire. HARRIS, when in office, will not. She will continue the policy of Biden and continue the war, and funding and arming Ukraine. Big choice for the voters to make, and a clear choice.
Trump will hammer out a ceasefire that will return all of Ukraine back to Russian control … first the pretense of the few regions that Putin says he wants back and then, the entire Ukraine….and of course, any other little country that has had the misfortune of once having been part of the Soviet Bloc—even the ones that are protected by NATO… which, of course, Trump will withdraw from unless they pledge their entire national treasure and souls to him in allegiance.
A lot of people believe that. This war has cost Russia a lot in assets and manpower. Putin may not be able to start another war. Cost is too high.
Trump is, right at this moment, training 1,500 elite North Korean troops to be sent into combat in Ukraine…I am sure that many more will follow…from many of his allies….
Did everyone miss the point of the post? chuq
He is now getting a lot of help from the first 3,000 of God only knows how many other thousands of North Korean troops now training on Russian soil and some are already on the combat front according to reports.
As long as the oil holds out and they can sell it to India and China at a profit, they can pay for a lot of North Korean troops.
Trump has got no brain for hammering out anything….Harris will keep the well oiled M<I-C up and running. chuq
I don’t see any reason to think the Russians are interested in ceasefire on any terms except surrender. They have a larger army than NATO forces in Europe. They have a larger and better arsenal. The USA and the main European countries are unprepared for real war, which is why the Ukrainians are being sacrificed. The Russians don’t have to negotiate. They can simply take what they want, which is those parts of Ukraine with a Russian-speaking majority. It is a sad and shameful story, but I didn’t write it.
They are not interested….but Ukraine is running out of bodies to throw in the meat grinder…..chuq