Russian soldiers 'are refusing to fight': Vladimir Putin's forces surrender as Ukrainian blitz to push back invaders exposes their weaknesses, intelligence official says
- Russian soldiers are refusing to fight in Ukraine it was claimed last night
- A video on social media showed Moscow's soldiers surrendering en masse
- Kyiv's forces said they 'understand the hopelessness of their situation'
By JAMES FRANEY IN BRUSSELS FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 09:14 AEST, 14 September 2022 | UPDATED: 10:41 AEST, 14 September 2022
Russian soldiers are refusing to fight in Ukraine amid Moscow’s rising losses, it was claimed last night.
A lightning counter-offensive by Kyiv last week has pushed Vladimir Putin’s invaders right back to the border in parts of the north-east of the country, reclaiming huge swatches of territory lost in the early days of the war.
The blitz forced Russian troops to either flee or surrender en masse, with videos on social media purporting to show Moscow’s soldiers lying down in the road in front of Kyiv’s forces as they ‘understand the hopelessness of their situation’, Ukrainian military intelligence said.
The embarrassing turnaround was also said to be having an impact at home for Putin.
Videos from social media showed Russian troops lying face down in front of Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv
Russian troops appear to surrender amidst Ukraine counter-attack
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APm34WlYeC4
‘Learning about the number of dead [estimated to be up to 43,000], Russian troops are refusing to fight on the territory of Ukraine, payments to the wounded occupiers have been halted,’ said Serhiy Haidai, the governor of Luhansk.
‘The military command of the Russian Federation suspended the dispatch of new, already formed units to the territory of Ukraine,’ he added .
His claims were backed up by The Institute of War. The US think-tank said Kyiv’s gains in the north-east Kharkiv region ‘may be impacting the will or ability of the Russian military command to use newly formed volunteer units in Ukraine in a timely fashion’.
US intelligence officials told the Washington Post they expect to see further humiliating retreats made by Moscow’s armed forces.
A Ukrainian soldier, pictured yesterday, helps a fellow wounded soldier on the road in the now freed territory in the Kharkiv Region
‘The Russians are in trouble,’ one source said. ‘Their weaknesses have been exposed and they don’t have great manpower reserves or equipment reserves.’ Another senior Western official said it was ‘too early to say’ whether the gains made by Ukraine amounted to ‘a turning point’ in the six-month war.
‘But it’s a moment that has power in terms of both operations and psychology,’ the official said. ‘It’s exactly what the Ukrainians need right now. They need that success, and they need that winning narrative. I would describe it as scoring a goal before half-time.’
Last night president Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was in full control of more than 1,500 square miles of recaptured territory and is stabilising a further area of the same size. On Monday, he had said Ukraine had retaken more than 2,000 square miles in its recent counter-offensive.
A Ukrainian soldier holds up a Russian flag to demonstrate in Kharkiv. Ukrainian officials, though, said it was important to make a distinction between taking territory and ensuring it was totally safe
Ukrainian officials, though, said it was important to make a distinction between taking territory and ensuring it was totally safe.
Kyiv said the army yesterday took control of Vovchansk – a town just two miles from the border and which had been under occupation since February.
Across Kharkiv, Ukrainian soldiers marked their victories by burning Russian flags. They inspected the remains of abandoned and charred enemy tanks while brothers-in-arms helped the wounded join the celebrations.
In London, the Ministry of Defence, in its daily briefing, said that the rout by the Ukrainian armed forces had ‘severely degraded’ one of Russia’s most prestigious tank units. The First Guards Tank Army could take years to rebuild, officials said. The unit ‘had been one of the most prestigious of Russia’s armies, allocated for the defence of Moscow, and intended to lead counter-attacks in the case of a war with Nato’, the MoD added.
Now dissent in Moscow is growing. One of Putin’s own MPs Mikhail Sheremet added his voice to criticism from military experts calling on the Kremlin strongman to start conscripting troops into the war. ‘Without full mobilisation, transferring to a military footing, including the economy, we will not achieve the proper results,’ he said.
And nearly 50 regional politicians have signed a petition calling on their leader to resign over his botched campaign in Ukraine.
Ukraine slammed Berlin yesterday for its failure to deliver Leopard tanks and Marder fighting vehicles despite repeated pleas from Kyiv. It claimed chancellor Olaf Scholz had repeatedly broken promises on arms.
‘Not a single rational argument on why these weapons cannot be supplied, only abstract fears and excuses,’ foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
Ukrainian soldiers burn Russian flag in Vovchansk as they regain territory
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Vladimir Putin's forces 'are refusing to fight' and are surrendering, intelligence official claims
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