Voice of Ukraine

From Jamie Peipon: The pace with which russia has been attempting to mobilize young men for war is pretty shocking. Apparently, some of those mobilized last week are already showing up in Ukraine. You can see video after video of men already on buses, or trying to line up in a parking lot or a train station. I write that they are “trying” to line up because many of the videos are showing men who are so drunk that they can barely stand up. It is particularly embarrassing when you consider these videos are taken and shared by their own countrymen. The truth is that they will likely be sent home in body bags because of the high level of professionalism that has been demonstrated by Ukraine’s armed forces.

In the US Army, basic combat training is about ten weeks which is then followed by other training that is more specific to one’s role. We have multiple bases that are dedicated in large part to basic combat training. Yearly, about 60,000 people enlist and are trained in the US Army. russia has no dedicated bases for training and they are attempting to mobilize at least 300,000 people in much less than a year. There’s just no way they can handle that volume. Their training is normally “on the job.” Recruits are sent to units near the front line where they learn from other soldiers before rotating into combat. But russian units have suffered such severe degradation that it is practically impossible to imagine anyone with the experience and skill to train others is both alive, and has the bandwidth to do so.

As you can see in the picture above, they are also being shipped out with equipment designed in the 90s. No, not the 1990s… the 1890s. If the fall of the Soviet Union (1991) seems like ancient history to you, consider that this Mosin-Nagant model rifle was in use almost thirty years before the BEGINNING of the Soviet Union. This was great equipment in tsarist russia. Several videos of more modern rifles have also been distributed, but these rifles are so rusted out that they will likely be more harm than help.

In order to avoid this mobilization, many russians are now fleeing the country. You can look at the traffic data on russia’s version of Google Maps and see that there are many miles of traffic lined up at the borders of countries that will still allow russians to cross the border, specificially: Georgia and Kazakhstan. Things are getting a bit urgent in this regard as there have been all kinds of reports about how russia itself will be closing all borders to military-aged men because 261,000 men had already fled the country in the few days between the Wednesday announcement of mobilization and the weekend.

While russia continues to escalate its war for “denazification,” President Zelenskyy topped the Jerusalem Post’s yearly ranking of the 50 most influential Jews in the world.

The Ukrainian armed forces still seem to be on the verge of another significant offensive. This morning there have been several reports indicating that they have broken through the russian front lines to the north of Lyman. This is good news. When Lyman is liberated, however, that will be very big news.

“As for me, I am poor and needy,
but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God!”