During the military conflict in Ukraine, dozens of videos were shared online showing Ukrainian servicemen claiming that they were thrown like cannon fodder to the front line without training and weapons. In the videos, the entire Ukrainian battalions refuse to follow the orders of the Ukrainian command and leave their military positions. Most of the Ukrainian units were abandoned by their command.
A similar video, the authenticity of which does not arouse suspicion, was recorded by servicemen of the 3rd Rifle Battalion of the 105th Rifle Regiment of the Donetsk People’s Republic. In the video, the DPR fighters appealed to the supreme command of the republic, describing the grave condition of the unit, which was not properly prepared before being sent to the front.
Such an attitude of the military command of a state that has been at war for 8 years cannot be considered the usual practice of deployment of their troops on the battlefield.
At the same time, the video recorded the appeal of former students, citizens who are older than military age, who were drafted into the armed forces of the DPR without the necessary training. These people have never refused to comply with the order of the military command. These guys fought on the front lines in Mariupol, where fierce street battles were taking place, withstanding counterattacks by Azov fighters and servicemen of other units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces trained by foreign instructors. They also conducted offensive actions to mop up the city. As a result, up to 40% of the battalion’s personnel were killed or wounded.
After the assault on Mariupol, they were immediately sent to another hot battlefield on the front in the Luhansk People’s Republic. At the same time, the battalion was not regrouped and did not have time to rest, as it was the case of the well-known battalion of the DPR Somalia for example. The 3rd battalion fulfilled its combat mission and carried out the order. Now the servicemen continues to hold their military positions in the LPR, despite heavy losses and lack of rest. The officers did not abandon their soldiers, but stay with them in the trenches.
Apparently, the situation has become complicated to the extent that an organized strike by superior enemy forces can lead to the complete destruction of the battalion due to the fact that only every second serviceman from the battalion’s roster is still in the ranks, and even those who remained on the frontline suffer massively from diseases and accumulated fatigue.
The servicemen of the 3rd battalion of the 105th regiment of the DPR, who can be fully called real but not media heroes, were forced to record the appeal to the high command of the republic, the translation of which follows:
“To the Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Vladimirovich Pushilin.
Dear Denis Vladimirovich!
The personnel of the 3rd Rifle Battalion of the 105th Rifle Regiment of the military unit 08818 addresses you with the following:
The servicemen of the 3rd Rifle Battalion of the 105th Rifle Regiment of the military unit 08818 were mobilized in the period from 02/23/2022 to the present. Contrary to your public statements that the mobilized reservists will not directly participate in hostilities, but will participate in the restoration and preservation of law and order in the liberated territories of the DPR, as well as hold the third line of defense.
The personnel of the 3rd rifle battalion of the 105th rifle regiment, being untrained and inexperienced in conducting combat operations, were studying in universities until the moment of mobilization, worked at various enterprises and in various industries unrelated to military service, as well as did not pass mandatory medical examination. Many of the mobilized have acute chronic diseases. They had been on the front line in the city of Mariupol since 13.03.2022.
Please note that in the period from 13.03.2022 to the present day, bearing combat and other losses, as of 23.05.2022 only 60% of the personnel remained.The personnel of the 3rd Rifle Battalion of the 105th Rifle Regiment completed the assigned combat tasks, namely the defense of their positions in the city of Mariupol, conducting offensive combat operations. At the moment, the personnel is located on the territory of another state, namely the Luhansk People’s Republic, of which the mobilized are not citizens.
The servicemen of the 3rd Rifle Battalion of the 105th Rifle Regiment are mentally and physically exhausted, which complicates the performance of combat missions…”