On day 430 of the war in Ukraine, the Russian military is cracking down on discipline using medieval punishments. All the while, it sees its hopes of an operational breakthrough on the ground running out.
Russian Military Discipline
The Russian military is cracking down on discipline as it is preparing to fend off the large-scale Ukrainian counteroffensive.
In recent months, the Russian leadership has started using a medieval technique to punish discipline violations.
Offenders are put in “Zindas,” or improvised cages in the ground that are covered with a metal grille.
“Multiple recent reports from Russian personnel give similar accounts of being placed in Zindans for misdemeanours including drunkenness and attempting to terminate their contracts,” the British Military Intelligence assessed in its most recent update.
The Russian military is a mix of professional troops with a contract and conscripts. The Russian Ministry of Defense has repeatedly stated that conscripts aren’t serving in combat roles in Ukraine. However, there have been instances in which draftees have been killed in the war.
“In the early months of the war, many Russian commanders took a relatively light touch in enforcing discipline, allowing those who refused to soldier to quietly return home,” the British Military Intelligence stated.
More than 14 months into the war, that is hardly the case anymore. The Russian units on the ground are suffering from manpower shortages. Indeed, some units have been on the frontline for months without any rotation to the rear. In comparison, the Ukrainians are trying to rotate units from combat every few weeks to keep them fresh and thus more effective.
“Since Autumn 2022, there have been multiple increasingly draconian initiatives to improve discipline in the force, especially since Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov assumed command of the operation in January 2023,” the British Military Intelligence added.
Upon assuming command, General Gerasimov cracked down on discipline, immediately issuing a directive. The top Russian officer ordered that all Russian troops ceized using personal cell phones and tablets, banned the use of non-military vehicles, and imposed strict grooming standards. The directive was an attempt to reassert a chain of command and rein in bad behavior.
Russian Casualties in Ukraine
The Russian forces keep taking casualties on the ground, but the downward trend in their losses continues.
In the past 24 hours, the Russian military, Wagner Group private military company, and pro-separatist forces lost just above 400 men killed or wounded. This number is night and day compared to the casualties the Russian forces were taking a lot of days just a few weeks ago.
Indeed, in March, there were multiple instances when Russian forces were losing just under 1,000 men killed or wounded every day.
Overall, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense claimed that as of Sunday, Ukrainian forces have killed and wounded approximately 190510 Russian troops.
Destroyed equipment includes: 308 fighter, attack, bomber, and transport jets, 294 attack and transport helicopters, 3,699 tanks, 2,914 artillery pieces, 7,189 armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, 544 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 18 boats and cutters, 5,842 vehicles and fuel tanks, 295 anti-aircraft batteries, 2,475 tactical unmanned aerial systems, 357 special equipment platforms, such as bridging vehicles, and four mobile Iskander ballistic missile systems, and 932 cruise missiles shot down by the Ukrainian air defenses.
MORE: The F-35 Now Comes in Beast Mode
MORE: Why the U.S. Navy Tried to Sink Their Own Aircraft Carrier
A 19FortyFive Defense and National Security Columnist, Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.
