Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
Independent Russian outlets have identified the practice being used on more than 100 soldiers.
A Ukrainian reconnaissance unit recently tuned into a Russian frontline radio frequency. Soldiers managed to intercept live conversations between commanders and their exhausted troops in the trenches.
The audio reveals the intense pressure faced by Russian forces. According to reports from the German newspaper Die Welt, commanding officers use extreme threats to force their men forward.
One intercepted leader resorted to physical threats to keep his unit moving. “If you come, I’ll beat you all with a stick. I’ll cut out your tongues. You damned idiots,” the commander shouted.
Sent to zero
Artillery is also used as a weapon against their own side. Another officer warned his men that he would order a tank to fire on them if they ignored him.
Then there is a specific command that chills the blood of the rank and file. The word is obnulit, which translates roughly to obliterate or eliminate.
When Russian soldiers hear this command, it means they are about to be executed by their own comrades. Bild reports that this order signals the end for anyone who refuses to advance.
No way home
Independent Russian media outlets have spent months tracking this deadly practice. Vërstka identified more than 100 servicemen accused of carrying out these internal executions.
Sometimes the punishment is a single bullet. Other times, men are sent into a deliberate death trap without enough gear to survive the assault.
A source told the news outlet ASTRA that defiant troops are often killed under the guise of medical evacuation. Witnesses described one incident where 66 men were sent on a forced mission. Not a single person made it back alive.
The search for numbers
Sending waves of unprotected men against fortified defensive lines burns through massive amounts of human life. This forces Moscow to constantly search for replacements.
The Kremlin is looking beyond its borders to fill those empty spaces. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently warned that North Korea could soon supply thousands of troops.
Zelenskyy estimates up to 50,000 soldiers might soon join the fight. If they end up on the front lines, they will likely face the exact same impossible odds as their Russian allies.
