Tears and hugs for Russians called up to fight in Ukraine
2 years, 3 months ago

Tears and hugs for Russians called up to fight in Ukraine

Associated Press  

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine — Russia escalated its military and political campaign Thursday to capture Ukrainian territory, rounding up Russian army reservists to fight, preparing votes on annexing occupied areas and launching new deadly attacks. “I was like, ‘Oh great!’ I went outside and started calling my parents, brother, all friends of mine to tell that they take me.” Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, in some of his harshest comments so far in the nearly 7-month-old war, lashed out at Russians succumbing to the pressure to serve in their country’s armed forces and those who haven’t spoken out against the war. In his nightly video address, he switched from his usual Ukrainian language into Russian to directly tell Russian citizens they are being “thrown to their deaths.” “You are already accomplices in all these crimes, murders and torture of Ukrainians,” Zelenskyy said, wearing a black T-shirt that said in English: “We Stand with Ukraine,” instead of his signature olive drab T-shirt. He said Russians’ options to survive are to “protest, fight back, run away or surrender to Ukrainian captivity.” Western leaders derided Putin’s mobilization order as an act of weakness and desperation.

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History of this topic

Dozens detained as Russian soldiers’ wives call for their return from Ukraine
10 months, 3 weeks ago

Dozens detained as Russian soldiers’ wives call for their return from Ukraine

Associated Press  

More than two dozen people, mostly journalists, were detained Saturday at a protest in central Moscow, as wives and other relatives of Russian servicemen mobilized to fight in Ukraine called for their return, according to independent Russian news reports. They marked 500 days since Russian President Vladimir Putin in September 2022 ordered a “partial mobilization” of up to 300,000 reservists …

Dismayed by Moscow’s war, Russian volunteers are joining Ukrainian ranks to fight Putin’s troops
1 year ago

Dismayed by Moscow’s war, Russian volunteers are joining Ukrainian ranks to fight Putin’s troops

Associated Press  

KYIV, Ukraine — When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ignited into war, back in Moscow, a young Russian who now goes by the name of Karabas was plunged into despair. Members of the pro-Ukrainian Russian ethnic Siberian Battalion practice at a military training close to Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023. Ukraine’s military has formed a battalion of soldiers made up …

How volunteers support Russian troops in Ukraine
1 year, 11 months ago

How volunteers support Russian troops in Ukraine

Al Jazeera  

The clanking sound of sewing machines resounded through a Moscow workshop where more than a dozen women were busy assembling tactical stretchers for Russian troops fighting in Ukraine. Due to their close contacts with troops on the ground, volunteer groups are also often the first to raise public awareness about logistical problems in the Russian armed forces – an issue …

Russia’s military call-up is having major repercussions almost everywhere but the Ukrainian battlefield
2 years, 2 months ago

Russia’s military call-up is having major repercussions almost everywhere but the Ukrainian battlefield

LA Times  

Less than three weeks ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the call-up of 300,000 men to bolster army ranks decimated by battlefield routs in Ukraine. “I need to build my new life now,” said a 30-year-old film producer named Sakhamin, who made his way to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi days after Putin’s Sept. 21 announcement of a “partial” mobilization. …

Photos: Russian reservists leave behind sobbing loved ones
2 years, 2 months ago

Photos: Russian reservists leave behind sobbing loved ones

Al Jazeera  

The sound of old Soviet war songs mixed with the sobbing of relatives in the small Russian town of Bataysk as freshly mobilised reservists in Russia’s southern Rostov region said goodbye to their families. Recruits were summoned as part of the partial mobilisation announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin after a decisive counteroffensive by the military in Ukraine, which Russia …

Putin’s call-up fuels Russians’ anger, protests and violence
2 years, 2 months ago

Putin’s call-up fuels Russians’ anger, protests and violence

Associated Press  

TALLINN, Estonia — Long lines of cars on roads snaking to Russia’s border crossings with Georgia, Kazakhstan and Mongolia, and similar queues at airports. Angry demonstrations — not just in Moscow and St. Petersburg — but in the remote far north province of Yakutia and in the southern region of Dagestan, with women chasing a police officer and shouting, “No …

Russia-Ukraine war: Approaching winter expected to make fighting more complicated for both parties
2 years, 3 months ago

Russia-Ukraine war: Approaching winter expected to make fighting more complicated for both parties

Firstpost  

Already, rainy weather is bringing muddy conditions that are starting to limit the mobility of tanks and other heavy weaponry, according to the Institute for the Study of War Kyiv: The onset of autumnal weather, with rains making fields too muddy for tanks, is beginning to cloud Ukraine’s efforts to take back more Russian-held territory before winter freezes the battlefields, …

Russia’s call-up splits EU; Ukraine says it shows weakness
2 years, 3 months ago

Russia’s call-up splits EU; Ukraine says it shows weakness

LA Times  

Russia’s rush to mobilize hundreds of thousands of recruits to staunch stinging losses in Ukraine is a tacit acknowledgement that its “army is not able to fight,” Ukraine’s president said Sunday, as splits sharpened in Europe over whether to welcome or turn away Russians fleeing the call-up. This is a challenge, but we are not afraid of that,” he said …

Putin orders partial military call-up, sparking protests
2 years, 3 months ago

Putin orders partial military call-up, sparking protests

Associated Press  

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilization of reservists Wednesday to bolster his forces in Ukraine, a deeply unpopular move that sparked rare protests across the country and led to almost 1,200 arrests. I’ve said enough.” The Vesna opposition movement called for protests, saying: “Thousands of Russian men — our fathers, brothers and husbands — will …

Tears and hugs for Russians called up to fight in Ukraine
2 years, 3 months ago

Tears and hugs for Russians called up to fight in Ukraine

LA Times  

A volunteer of the Luhansk regional election commission, left, distributes newspapers to residents in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, on Sept. 22, 2022. eastern Ukraine. “I was like, ‘Oh great!’ I went outside and started calling my parents, brother, all friends of mine to tell that they take me.” Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky, in some of his harshest comments so far in …

Putin is panicking, says Dutch PM about Russia's military mobilization plan
2 years, 3 months ago

Putin is panicking, says Dutch PM about Russia's military mobilization plan

NL Times  

Prime Minister Mark Rutte is not impressed by Russian president Vladamir Putin’s declaration of partial military mobilization. “You see that Ukraine is starting to act successfully against Russian aggression with Western support.” Putin’s partial military mobilization means, among other things, that reservists with military experience will be called up for military service. “The West wants to destroy our country,” Putin …

Russia struggles to replenish its troops in Ukraine
2 years, 4 months ago

Russia struggles to replenish its troops in Ukraine

Associated Press  

The prisoners at the penal colony in St. Petersburg were expecting a visit by officials, thinking it would be some sort of inspection. Speaking on condition of anonymity because she feared reprisals, she said her boyfriend wasn’t among the volunteers, although with years left on his sentence, he “couldn’t not think about it.” As Russia continues to suffer losses in …

AP News Digest 4:15 a.m.
2 years, 8 months ago

AP News Digest 4:15 a.m.

The Independent  

Get Nadine White's Race Report newsletter for a fresh perspective on the week's news Get our free newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Get our free newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. ———————————————————————- MORE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR ——————————————————————— RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR-SPANISH DISINFORMATION — Disinformation about …

Russia-Ukraine war: Putin greenlights letting volunteers fight
2 years, 9 months ago

Russia-Ukraine war: Putin greenlights letting volunteers fight

Al Jazeera  

Russia says more than 16,000 people, mostly from the Middle East, have appealed to join the fighting. Russian President Vladimir Putin has backed allowing volunteers, including from abroad, to help pro-Moscow separatists fighting in Ukraine’s Donbas region, more than two weeks after he sent thousands of Russian troops into the neighbouring country. “As to the delivery of arms, especially Western-made …

For foreigners volunteering to fight against Russia, Ukraine offers camaraderie and a cause
2 years, 9 months ago

For foreigners volunteering to fight against Russia, Ukraine offers camaraderie and a cause

India Today  

Michael Ferkol, who once served as a supply specialist with engineer battalions in the U.S. Army, had been in Rome studying archaeology when he heard the Ukrainian president's appeal for foreign fighters. FOLLOW LIVE UPDATES ON UKRAINE-RUSSIA WAR UKRAINE'S INTERNATIONAL LEGION Ukraine has established an "international" legion for people from abroad and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has publicly urged foreigners to …

Ukraine-Russia news: troops ‘insufficient’ for full invasion
2 years, 10 months ago

Ukraine-Russia news: troops ‘insufficient’ for full invasion

CNN  

Kyiv, Ukraine CNN — Russia has not assembled sufficient forces to launch an imminent full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Wednesday, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov threatened “appropriate response measures” if the West continues its “aggressive line.” Kuleba told reporters in Kyiv that Russian troops could attack Ukraine at any time, as had been the …

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