A Russian soldier sent to Ukraine was overheard complaining about the shortage of weapons and equipment to support Moscow’s ground forces.
In another intercepted phone conversation published by the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU), the soldier was heard talking to an unidentified man and reporting that his unit was surrounded on the Donetsk front.
He said that he and his fellow Russian soldiers are running out of weapons to counter Ukrainian attacks.
The unidentified soldier also said his unit was suffering “colossal losses” but that it was too dangerous to withdraw them from the battlefield.
The anxious Russian noted that everyone in their location – including children – hates them.
Way Out of War
As the conversation continued, the soldier told the person he was conversing with that he was losing his nerve and wanted to return home.
The SSU continually reminds the Russian occupiers that one way to get out of the war is to surrender to the Ukrainian Army.
However, the security agency said that all forces who voluntarily surrender will still bear responsibility for the alleged war crimes that they have committed.
Russian Struggles
Nearly seven months since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, many reports of Moscow’s struggles continue to surface.
In August, intelligence from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence revealed that Russia has been unable to form new military units due to a lack of people willing to go to war.
Only 30 people have volunteered to be part of a new tank battalion out of the 160 required.
Moscow is also struggling to resupply its troops in Ukraine with weapons and equipment due to sanctions in response to its invasion.
“They’ve already faced an issue in terms of replenishing their inventory because of components to some of those systems. And that’s already had a practical effect on Putin,” a senior US defense official told The War Zone.