Two intercepted phone calls from Russian soldiers suggest entire units of Moscow’s troops are being wiped out as they try to contain Ukraine’s summer offensive.
In the first, published by the Military Intelligence of Ukraine (HUR), a soldier discusses the fate of the “27th” in conversation with his wife or girlfriend. Brigade” fighting in Svatove, near the besieged city of Kupyansk, saying:
“Don’t you know what happened to the 27th Brigade?”
“NO?”
“Haven’t you heard about it?”
“No, what happened?”
“The problem is that they have been completely dismembered.”
“Where did it happen?”
“In Swatowe.”
“You mean everyone?”
“Yes, all our boys were slaughtered.”
The soldier then goes on to claim that the massacre took place because the unit was “far too relaxed” and drinking in advance of an expected relief from the front.
He says: “Yes, they knew they would be withdrawn soon, so they just had to be patient.
“But no, bitch, they must have gotten drunk.”
Fighting in the Svatove region has been intense for several weeks as Russian troops advance towards the city of Kupiansk.
Kupiansk is a major railway hub with five different lines crossing in the city – one of which leads directly to Russia – making it an extremely important strategic target that Russia has already captured once before its liberation last fall.
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Retaking Kupiansk would be a significant achievement for Russia – not only would it mean the restoration of rail connections with Russia, but the Kremlin would also make the most of the propaganda potential of retaking the territories liberated from Ukraine in last year’s counteroffensives.
For now, Ukraine’s armed forces appear to be holding out against the attacks, but Russia’s push in Kupiansk is aimed at drawing Ukrainian troops away from Kiev’s own counteroffensives elsewhere.
In another call published by HUR, only one speaker can be heard describing a seemingly dire situation in an unknown location.
Speaking to someone named “Denis,” the soldier says he received a report and “all five boys are dead.”
He says: “The chief of staff of the regiment showed me a report that said tank soldiers had died there.
“I checked and found that all five of our boys were presumed dead. There was another name that was unknown.”
He goes on to describe the situation as “just shitty” and claims: “The entire regiment is being brought back.”
He added: “All territorial defense regiments will be disbanded. Only our regiment remains and a merger is underway.”
Although the calls have not been independently verified and the exact dates of the calls are not known, the situation is difficult for soldiers on both sides as Ukraine’s summer offensive gains momentum.
Ukrainian soldiers have told the Kyiv Post they will continue fighting, but morale has suffered and there is no quick end in sight.
However, the release of such wiretapped conversations by Ukrainian intelligence services suggests that the Russian military is in a much worse situation, with soldiers fearing their own side as much as that of their Ukrainian opponent.
Previous calls include: