A new video reveals Russian military draftees finding out they’re headed for Ukraine — and some aren’t happy about it.
A Russian military commissar makes it clear that he’s not giving them men a suggestion, as the draftees yell and shout over their new commander.
“That’s it! The games are over! You are all military… Any questions?”
London-based Russian-speaking Estonian Dmitri Masinski published the video of the unruly draftees on Friday.
Mansinki runs War Translated, which describes itself as “an independent project concerned with translating various materials about the war in Ukraine into the English language to improve understanding of the conflict for the broader Western audience.”
It’s not clear where these draftees received the bad news. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial draft after Russia suffered a series of disastrous combat setbacks in its invasion of Ukraine.
“Why are you screaming like women?!?! Shut your mouths!!!” pic.twitter.com/3YLu2W0WgO
— Dmitri (@wartranslated) September 23, 2022
The uniformed man appears on a stage with a Russian military poster to his right, and a podium with outdated Soviet heraldry below him.
The official outlines a training regimen for the draftees that raises serious questions about their potential combat effectiveness in a bloody and sophisticated armed conflict.
Will Russia’s mobilization push the conflict in Ukraine into a radical new phase?
“Three days here. Then flight. Then two weeks [supplemental] training.”
From this discussion, it appears this training structure could land the draftees on the frontlines of the combat zone in less than a month.
Russia has incurred serious casualties in a “special military operation” the Kremlin initially expected to end in days.
So. Those guys will be on the front in approx 3 weeks? More or less.
— JoeJohn (@jeanmar63321030) September 23, 2022
The Russian military official continued his briefing, paving over the unpleasant reality facing the conscripts by advertising the benefits of military service.
“Combat payments, status of a combat veteran, until the end of special operation, then arrival home … No one will fire you from your job. Your job is reserved, your workplace.”
Putin has ordered the forced mobilization of some Russian military veterans and other personnel already in the Russian military’s reserves. It’s not clear if these draftees already have military experience.
Russian propagandists have made imperialist arguments against the existence of the Ukrainian nation to justify the war of aggression.
Russia is carrying out “sham referendums” in Kremlin-backed puppet states in eastern Ukraine to facilitate their annexation, according to Euronews.
