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Russian President Vladimir Putin enacted a partial military mobilization in September.
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The Guardian reported that Russia is undersupplying or insufficiently supplying the new troops.
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“Soon they’ll make us buy our own grenades,” a draftee said in a recorded call, per The Guardian.
After Russian President Vladimir Putin enacted a partial military mobilization in September, some new conscripts have vocalized their grievances about the army’s failure to provide resources.
“They gave us absolutely no equipment. The army has nothing, we had to buy all our gear ourselves,” complained a 23-year-old draftee named Vladimir, according to The Guardian.
The Guardian’s report detailed complaints from new conscripts and their families that the army is undersupplying or insufficiently supplying the troops as Russia struggles with dwindling manpower and significant battlefield setbacks. Families have stepped in to buy needs for troops such as thermal underwear and body armor, but prices for supplies and gear are rising as stock runs low, the report says.
Vladimir’s sister posted a phone call on Russia’s social media site VK where he vented about the army’s neglect of the newly mobilized soldiers. Insider has not independently verified the call.
“I even had to paint my gun to cover the rust. It is a nightmare … Soon they’ll make us buy our own grenades,” he said, adding that they had been given Airsoft gun scopes.
Anastasia, a teacher and a member of the Help for Soldiers, told The Guardian that “It is bad enough that our men are being taken from us.”
“We had to spend our monthly salary on my husband’s gear so that he at least has a chance to come back. Frankly, it is completely embarrassing. It is a mess,” she added.
According to the Guardian, citing BBC News Russian, there have been more than 12,000 opened cases involving stolen military gear or equipment within the last eight years.
Pavel Luzin, an independent Russian military expert, told The Guardian that “Russia was just not prepared for mobilization of this scale. It was doomed to have logistical issues.”
“When mobilization was announced, there was no mechanism in place to actually implement it,” Luzin added.
Russia has been forced to retreat from certain parts of Ukraine, has threatened nuclear warfare, and declared martial law in four illegally annexed territories. The country’s moves have been regarded by world leaders and analysts as desperate and proof that Putin’s war efforts are failing.
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