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Russia is deploying volunteer fighters in Ukraine to fill the shortage of its soldiers and assist the army. However, these fighters lack proper equipment, and coordination with their army or air force is challenging. Moreover, they are not receiving support even when needed.
In late 2022, the Russian military decided to withdraw from the city of Balakleya in eastern Ukraine. At that time, they left behind a group of volunteers who lacked adequate weapons to fight. About 50 members of the National Army Combat Reserve were deployed to Ukraine for this purpose. Among them are several thousand young men from the Russian reserve, entering the battlefield against Ukraine for the first time.
One fighter, wearing a body camera, had footage of combat operations lasting nearly four hours. Reports suggest that the footage showed glimpses of the combat operations of the reserve. During the attack on Ukraine, the Russian Ministry of Defense had deployed this reserve unit to the battlefield. It is worth noting that this reserve unit was established in 2015, and the video footage indicates that they were assigned the task of securing Balakleya without air support or heavy weaponry.
Lack of Air Support for Ukraine's Encirclement
In Russia, this National Army Combat Reserve is known as BARS. In the video footage, a BARS fighter can be seen asking, "Where is our air force?" During the pause in Ukraine's bombardment, his comrades can be seen eating canned meat stew. These fighters were given the responsibility of defending Crossroads, north of the city of Balakleya. They were confused even about coordinating with the Russian army.
In response to this question, Squad leader Anton Kuznetsov says there must be a good reason for the lack of air support. Another soldier can be heard complaining about whether they understand that they are surrounded. It should be noted that the video footage was recorded using Anton's body camera. Anton has claimed that he created the video, and later, the memory card of the camera got lost. However, he categorically denied commenting on combat operations.
What Does the Russian Ministry of Defense Say?
As of now, there has been no reaction or response from the Russian Ministry of Defense or the Kremlin regarding this video. Also, it is not known how much the Russian army depends on the BARS unit. According to reports, a commander from the BARS unit involved in the fighting in Balakleya has confirmed his unit's presence but made no comments on the unit's movements. It is worth mentioning that the war between Russia and Ukraine has been going on for two years, and there is no apparent end to the conflict.