Russia capitalizes on unprepared Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv

The Russian military has launched an offensive in the northern Kharkiv region. Ukraine is seeking reserves, but many soldiers are unprepared for a real battle with Vladimir Putin's army.

Journalists from "The Washington Post" spoke with Ukrainian military personnel, including unit commanders, about the progress in training new Armed Forces of Ukraine personnel.

Many of them complained about the poor training system for both new recruits and military personnel transferred to frontline units from relatively quiet rear positions.

According to the military, the prospect of being sent to dangerous positions on the front line without proper training is the main reason many Ukrainians fear conscription into the army.

We had people who didn't even know how to disassemble and assemble an assault rifle, complains the 28-year-old deputy commander of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade, whom "The Washington Post" refers to by his call sign "Schmidt." If we have recruits who don't know the basics, they will simply die, he adds.

Russia has made progress this year mainly because the Armed Forces of Ukraine do not have enough soldiers.

To immediately transfer more soldiers to the battlefield, the newly appointed commander, Colonel General Alexander Syrsky, moved people to brigades involved in the fiercest battles who had previously served in rear positions, guarding bridges and other infrastructure. This was done partly to reduce the number of men needing to be drafted into the army.

The issue of conscription is extremely painful and politically dangerous for Zelensky. When Syrsky's predecessor, General Valery Zaluzhny, proposed drafting about 500,000 people into the army, Zelensky publicly rejected the proposal, citing the lack of need for such a large number of people and the difficulties in paying them.

However, the situation in Ukraine's eastern front is now markedly worse. Commanders say that many of the new soldiers seem poorly prepared, although some have served in the army since the beginning of the Russian invasion, albeit far from the battlefield.