Russia forcing untrained men in Donbas to fight in war hotspots in Ukraine: Report

Russia has been pushing untrained civilians from separatists-controlled Donbas into the crucial spots of its war in Ukraine which has now entered the 25th day. Without revealing the last names of the people from the Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine, Kyiv Independent stated that nearly every man known by 24-year-old Oleksii in Donetsk Oblast including friends, school classmates and former colleagues, has been ‘illegally conscripted’ by Russian-controlled proxies. Oleksii said that none of these men has the experience of serving in the military before, yet many of them have been forced into the hottest spots of the Russia-Ukraine war. 

As Russia appears to still struggle to achieve one of its primary goals of occupying Ukraine’s airspace, the report’s revelation indicates the apparent desperation of Moscow to ramp up its attacks on the neighbouring nation. Ukraine has claimed that Russian forces have lost more than 14,000 personnel along with other losses in military gear.

Meanwhile, Kyiv has claimed that civilians have been continuously targetted by Russia. Amid the deaths of journalists and stories of struggling civilians amid the war, Oleksii told Kyiv Independent that the men forced to fight in hotspots “have never held a machine gun in their hands”. 

Russian invasion into Ukraine began on February 24 and at the same time, according to the report, Russian-controlled militants ramped up offensives in Donbas. It is pertinent to note here that the partially-occupied region in eastern Ukraine, Donbas in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts was captured by Russia in 2014. 

Russia’s proxies reportedly accused Ukrainian Armed Forces of escalation and announced a demonstrative evacuation of women and children from Donbas to Russia. These proxies even launched a mobilisation campaign conscripting all men below the age of 55. Oleksii revealed to the newspaper that his former colleagues from a coal mine were abducted by Russian-controlled militants from their workplaces and were later deployed to the southern front in Mariupol, which is a city in Donetsk Oblast that has witnessed some of the heaviest fightings since the invasion began. 

‘Today I’m home, tomorrow they can take me away’

Oleksii’s only friend who has not been forcefully conscripted to the Russian army is 27-year-old Serhii who is listed as an “essential worker” in the coal mine. Serhii is exempted from mobilisation until April and he is uncertain if the authorities would prolong it. According to Kyiv Independent, Serhii declined to speak on the record by texting Oleksii, “I won’t speak to a journalist. No offense, mate. Today I’m at home, tomorrow they can take me away, and my mom and girlfriend will stay in Khrestivka and face issues”.

Image: AP