Ukrainian mobilisation struggles: Conscript training falls short
- The mobilisation push has so far not significantly bolstered Ukraine’s forces on the battlefield, those people say. Many conscripts are still completing the weekslong training process and have yet to reach the front. And some recruits who have arrived are not physically fit for combat, according to soldiers from Ukrainian units cited by the American daily.
"Large numbers of recruits will arrive at the front in the coming weeks, soldiers and military analysts said, but some are poorly trained or out of shape," wrote the "New York Times" on Wednesday, citing Ukrainian officials, military personnel, and analysts.
- The mobilization push has so far not significantly bolstered Ukraine’s forces on the battlefield, those people say. Many conscripts are still completing the weekslong training process and have yet to reach the front. And some recruits who have arrived are not physically fit for combat, according to soldiers from Ukrainian units cited by the American daily.
30,000 conscriptions per month
Some brigades deployed on the front report that in recent weeks the number of recruits arriving has increased. Spokesman for the 33rd Mechanised Brigade Nazar Voytenkow said on Friday that his unit "received more newbies this month" than they had at the beginning of the year. - And today I was told that more are on the way," he announced.
Ukrainian authorities refused to provide the number of new recruits, claiming it is confidential information. However, three military experts familiar with the figures said that since May - when a new conscription law came into effect in Ukraine - 30,000 people are conscripted into the army per month. This is two or three times more than during the winter months and about the same number are recruited monthly by the Russian army, writes the "NYT."
Spokesman for the 65th Brigade, which is fighting in southern Ukraine, Serhij Skibczyk said the situation has slightly improved compared to the end of 2023, when there was a severe lack of soldiers. Now, small groups of recruits arrive at his unit every week, "But our needs still exceed the number of people we’re getting," he said.
In April, the then-commander of the Joint Forces of Ukraine, General Yuri Sodol, said that on some sections of the front, the Russians outnumbered Ukrainian soldiers by more than seven to one.
However, Ukraine has difficulty recruiting more soldiers due to a system that critics say is mired in bureaucracy and corruption. A recent survey also found that most Ukrainians consider the basic training of conscripts to be insufficient, leading to some men avoiding conscription out of fear that they will not be adequately prepared for combat, the newspaper writes.
Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Defence Committee Yegor Chernev texted that the "situation with mobilization has improved significantly" but did not provide specific numbers.
According to Justice Minister Denys Maluska, in addition to conscription, Ukraine has also released about 4,200 inmates from prison to go to the front in exchange for the possibility of pardon after they complete service.
A doctor fighting near the city of Toretsk in eastern Ukraine said that her brigade had received 2,000 recruits and prisoners in the last two months.
"They are not ready for combat"
As the "NYT" noted, citing soldiers and analysts, it is important to mobilise new recruits and provide them with sufficient weapons and ammunition, as well as training.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted this month that there are not enough centres to train recruits. He added that several brigades are insufficiently armed due to delays in delivering Western weapons.
Spokesman for the 33rd Mechanised Brigade Voytenkow said that in his unit, additional weekly training sessions were conducted with recruits to familiarise them with the weapons and armoured vehicles they would use. After basic training - as he noted - "they are not ready to fight, honestly."
