Originally published at Judgenap.com and reprinted with permission
The Ukrainian military revealed some of its struggles to get men in uniform and remain on the frontlines.
“I don’t want to be a populist — I want to be a realist,” Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said.
“The Ministry of Defense is coming into my hands with a [$6.7 million] shortfall, two million Ukrainians who are wanted and 200,000 who are AWOL.”
Ukrainska Pravda reports the number of desertions is significantly higher, nearly 300,000.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has turned into a four-year-long war of attrition. As a much larger country, Russia has been slowly winning the conflict.
Ukraine’s manpower issues have been previously documented, but a public admission from a top official is rare.
Ukraine has attempted to fill its ranks by barring men from leaving the country and conscripting all males 25 and older.
Ukraine is also facing a massive budget shortfall. The EU has attempted to exploit frozen Russian assets held in Europe to fund Kiev, but has failed to agree on how to execute the scheme.
