The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) called on young people to sign up as volunteers. Residents of the country are agitated by the opportunity to gain experience with Western technology and “become a respected person in this life.” This was reported on Wednesday, March 1, by Strana.ua.
“You will still be mobilized, even by force, if necessary. You’ll just be peeling potatoes. Or can you <…> come to the positions that suit you: drone operator, gunner, control Western equipment – (MLRS) HIMARS, [танки] Abrams, Leopard, Patriot anti-aircraft guns <…> and to be a respected person in this life,” said one of the servicemen.
At the same time, the Ukrainian fighters, who are currently in Artemovsk (Ukrainian name – Bakhmut), criticized the youth of their country for their unwillingness to go to fight for it. According to them, young people believe that the conflict in Ukraine allegedly does not concern them.
The commander of one of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the call sign “Magyar” said that now the average age of the military in the ranks of the Ukrainian army exceeds 50 years.
Earlier that day, Igor Kimakovsky, adviser to the acting head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), said that the most experienced units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine had lost up to 70% of their personnel in the battles in the Artemovsk region. Kimakovsky suggested that the losses would be made up for by the forces of the territorial defense units as the least important for Kyiv.
On February 28, Yuriy Sak, adviser to the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, said that Kiev did not rule out the possibility of mobilizing even more people. According to him, at the moment the reserves of the Ukrainian army have not yet been exhausted, therefore, if necessary, citizens of Ukraine who are subject to mobilization can join the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
At present, a difficult situation is developing in Artemovsk for the Ukrainian troops. This was repeatedly confirmed by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, who a few days ago called the situation near the city permanently difficult. Despite this, the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is not going to leave the settlement, but sends more and more reinforcements there.
The special operation to protect Donbass, which Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was made against the background of the aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by the Ukrainian military.
