With management problems in Donetsk, several dozen Ukrainians deserted during training in France
A French official confirmed on January 6 to AFP that dozens of soldiers from the 155th “Anna of Kyiv” Mechanized Brigade deserted during military training in France, Kyiv Independent writes.
“There has been a number of defections, but it is a marginal phenomenon compared to the number of people who have been trained,” the official told AFP. “They were in the French barracks, so they had the right to leave,” he continued.
The official refers to a brigade that is trained and equipped by European states. It has around 5,800 soldiers, and less than 2,000 of them were trained in France, according to Defense and Security Monitor.
The information about the desertions of several dozen Ukrainian soldiers appeared for the first time a few days ago, following a media investigation by Censor.net, a Ukrainian publication. It claims that the soldiers of the unit, now deployed near Pokrovsk, suffered heavy losses and deserted due to ineffective command and organization on the Ukrainian side. It appears that 50 of these deserted while in training in France and several hundred others left their posts before being deployed to the front.
Mihailo Drapatii, the commander of the Ukrainian ground forces, acknowledged that he faced challenges with the French-trained brigade, including a large number of deserters and poor organization.
“There are problems, there were problems with people, with instruction and with command,” he said. In this context, an investigation was launched regarding desertions and abuse of authority.
It seems that the reason why the soldiers deserted would be the fact that they did not receive the drones or electronic warfare equipment promised by the commander. On this basis, the other day, the head of the Ukrainian army requested to equip the brigade with drones. At the same time, in this context, there is talk of a growing need for reform within the Ukrainian army.
Source: www.mediafax.ro
