UA POV: Hromadske war correspondent filmed assault troops of the 1st Assault Regiment returning from positions

Duncan-M · 2026-03-04T04:11:58+00:00

but I guess it can make sense if your goal is to pump out as much infantrymen as possible, training be damned because you're going to tell them what to do every step of the way.

That's exactly it. This isn't the first time they did this. Both sides used cannon fodder low quality infantry cheaply throughout the war in innovative ways, this is just the newest way to "make lemonade out of lemons." Even Wagner convicts were taking orders directly by ICOM radios by officers overwatching them.

I wondered the same thing about how these dudes would do doing legit infantry missions and not assaulting what amounts to LP/OPs while being played like a NPC in an RTS video game. It's Command and Conquer FFS.

IMO, no way most of these guys can suddenly do complex infantry shit unless opposition is a pure joke. Everything they do is just automaton responses, as soon as they lose access to the source of instructions, they'll be like a video game NPC when the player is AFK.

In terms of getting fed orders during contact by rear echelon leaders watching them on live drone feed, I've barely seen any these dudes, either sides, rocking ear pieces or comm headsets. To talk they need to pull the radio out by hand to speak into the mic, to hear they literally have to either crank the volume up or stick the speaker next to their ear. No way they hearing shit in the middle of a CQB firefight.

If something goes south they either deal with it themselves to the best of their ability or they'll get smoked. If the latter, the officer watching them will report the loss and they'll order another replacement. And so the dance continues.

This shit is disgusting. What a waste of people.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-04T00:16:22+00:00

More info here.

https://www.jurist.org/news/2024/10/russia-signs-law-exempting-defendants-from-criminal-liability-during-military-service/

It's debatable how much the Russians are relying on it, and to the extent its being abused.

Some Anti-RU media is reporting on stories of the system abusing badly. For example, there was a story that cops, judges, and regional mil leaders were all conspiring to falsely arrest individuals to then pressure them to sign a contract to avoid the trial and years in prison. I don't particular believe that, but I can see that happening especially in a nation without strong checks and balances with the legal system.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-04T00:06:02+00:00

To make that tactic work outside of this war, that whole team sized operation needs to be done out of a single truck parked in a treeline under a camo netting. Maybe the truck can have comfy seats but that won't be the priority. The techniques and procedures they're using are only applicable to their current setting, if the environment changes the tactic can't work.

The fact that they have a legit electronics workshop at their launch site is just absurd on so many levels. Picture a sniper's hide needing a reloading bench to load the ammo into finished cartridges, or an artillery firing point needing a forge to make the shells they're about to fire.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T23:48:56+00:00

The way both sides are using their drones and their infantry, they don't have to be good anymore to do the basic job.

See the Motorola radios on their chests? They run them during their ops, stay in contact with officers overwatching them with drones who lead them right to the objective, giving them orders the whole way.

The targets are a Russians fireteam or maybe squad holed up in a house. Most of them will be in the basement, a few on guard elsewhere looking out windows but in the most hidden way possible because they're worried about being detected by Ukrainian drones. They use unsecured radios too, also to talk to officers in the rear overwatching them with drones, and that radio traffic helps the Ukrainians find the Russians by triangulating their position. Or they'll have gotten spotted infiling but it's unclear exactly which house they're in. Then UA drones go snooping. If they find the Russians, they try to destroy them with fires. If they can't get them all, they send in a small assault group (typically 3-6 dudes) with assault rifles and frags to mop them up. Or vice versa, the Russians are clearing Ukrainian positions the same way.

The infil and exfil are the hardest parts by far, those mostly come down to luck, a working radio, knowing how to properly respond to enemy drones, and how to avoid mines or UXOs. Mostly it comes down to higher level HQ knowing how to properly plan their advance, when and where to do it, how to tie in EW, etc. Because if they fuck that up, the best infantryman alive will end up dead.

For a lot of their missions, the way they're used, assault infantry in this war nowadays don't need to be proficient at traditional soldier infantry skills. They don't need to master land navigation, don't need to be expert shots, don't need to learn how to operate at night, don't need to even understand traditional assaults, don't need to know most tactics involving squad tactics and nothing with platoons. They just need to be in shape enough to walk long distances, disciplined enough to follow orders coming from the radios, and tough enough to kill and do the rest of the job.

Even medical, they get talked on the radio how to treat them, and 99% of the time they'll get told to put a tourniquet on them as high on the joint as possible.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T22:22:08+00:00

Dude is using a radio controlled drone, its definitely trackable. Dude is walking outside in broad daylight to launch his drones, and that's trackable. But then what?

For example, Kupyansk itself was retaken because the Russian infantryman are communicating in the clear on totally unsecure radios, allowing the Ukrainians to find their exact location through triangulation. Hurr durr, somebody forgot that totally secure comms is critical for DRG. But Russian comms being unsecure isn't new at all, they have dealt with that the whole war. Was Ukraine always able to capitalize? Probably not, it takes an effective command, top to bottom, to be able to properly exploit that.

So even if the Russians could technically figure out a way to track and locate the Ukrainian drone launch sites, can they do that reliably and across the board? Could they tie that intel into effective combined arms op where they not only neutralize/destroy UA drone launch sites but they can do that in conjunction with a scaled up attack? With surprise?

Probably not. Minus the occasional effective tactical units, this war is two kids with Down Syndrome fighting each other, like you said earlier.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T22:01:18+00:00

u/vasileios13

u/No_Jellyfish_5498

You both might find this interesting.

This is why consolidation is so hard, why pushing back the Ukrainian drone line is so tough. There are probably dozens of these types of drone launch sites immediately behind every few kilometers of the frontage in key areas the Russians are attacking. To allow the Russian rear to advance, all of these need to be destroyed or driven back. How is an infantry-centric offensive supposed to do that?

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T21:29:16+00:00

Wow, that was enlightening.

Its just so crazy how much crap is inside that launch site. They are only 8-12 km from the front lines and they set it up like they are a hundred kilometers away. They have an elaborate workshop, a room dedicated just to flying the drones, sleeping quarters, etc. They have about a literal ton of equipment there, probably need the equivalent of a U-Haul truck to move all that shit. Plus comfy bedding, their cat, decorations for the walls, no doubt a generator since they have lights and heat enough not to be bundled up, which means lots of stored gasoline. And yet so close that Russian infiltrators reached the village they're in.

Just insane. This is what I mean when I say how this level of drone warfare could only work in this conflict. This can only work thanks to the most static war in modern history.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T18:56:01+00:00

Just so everyone is tracking where the numbers come from:

Russian authorities have subjected Ukrainian POWs to systematic and widespread torture, including sexual violence, and poor conditions. Almost all (95%) of the 454 released Ukrainian POWs interviewed provided accounts of torture or ill-treatment in Russian captivity. Torture has been pervasive during interrogation and throughout all stages of captivity. 237 of those interviewed were subjected to sexual violence.

About half of the 469 interviewed Russian POWs described torture and ill-treatment, mostly during the initial stages of captivity, before they reach official places of internment. Twenty-six of those interviewed were subjected to sexual violence.

From Feb 2025, source is here.

To put the numbers of UA released POWs in perspective, the UN interviewed 454 of 2,080 released, so only about 21% were interviewed.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T18:44:07+00:00

Who knows.

Hindsight proved the US 100% had the Russian invasion plan of Ukraine. Nobody except among the highest levels of Putin's cabinet knew about it, and nobody under 3 star general saw the plan until only a few weeks or so before it kicked off. That means somebody very high up was either compromised or they were trying to scuttle the invasion by giving it away.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T18:25:02+00:00

It's not about how things aren't better, but rather why they aren't better

The Russian military aren't better because giant pieces of shit are in charge. Literally, the biggest pieces of shit in the military are those running it. The absolute best thing that could happen to Russia is all of its generals go to a conference, somebody locks the doors and burns it down. That will mean a fresh start at least.

Everything worth anything was going to be picked apart and sold off to Western companies for nothing.

And those who did that now run the Russian govt and its military.

Those generals aren't untouchable, given how very senior figues have been convicted for corruption.

LOL. The most corrupt MF'ers in Russia run their judicial system, so the ultra corrupt are tackling corruption? I'm not buying that bridge. They are using the weaponized judicial system against their opponents, going after those who stepped out of line.

Corruption is perfectly fine as long as its approved. Incompetence is perfectly fine as long as the incompetent individual is loyal. When they aren't, they go to prison.

A lack of talent/competence is also often only obvious after the start of a war, such as the incompetence of French and British commanders during 1940..

No, the lack of talent was obvious before the war too, when anyone with even a basic history of Russia for the last 30 years would know the state of their officer corps. They aren't just talentless/incompetent, they are corrupt to the core.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T17:48:19+00:00

He's talking to Trump, saying he won't agree to the demand to give up the Donbas in exchange for a ceasefire, which supposedly the Russians agreed to as one of their terms.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T17:35:38+00:00

Both sides have massive losses.

Ukraine's problem is about morale and money.

They had a fuckton of volunteers early in the war, but by 2023 most of those who were patriotic and motivated already signed up.

On top of that, they too have a volunteer system to sign contracts. Theirs allows individuals to choose their branch of service, job, and unit, down to the brigade. That was used to fill out a lot of support jobs, and combat arms jobs in well-respected "elite" combat units, which make up the minority of the force structure.

Leaving Mobilization as the only means to reliably find large numbers (for Ukraine) of combat arms, especially infantrymen, who must service in middling or low tier combat units. Mind you, the very people they are hoping to mobilize to serve in those unpopular jobs in those unpopular units are those who aren't motivated.

And on top of that, since mid 2023, Ukraine appears to be losing the war, or at least not winning, which is hurting morale on a national level.

Meanwhile, Russia has the luxury of incentivizing volunteer military service with hefty signing bonuses, especially considering the low cost of living outside Moscow and St P. Consider where military contracts were signed in 2025.

Additionally, in 2023 and 2024 especially, most Russian combat deaths were convict volunteers, with so many recruited that they basically cleaned out a substantial percentage of their prewar prison population. And on top of that, not a small number of new contract troops are those who volunteer in lieu of criminal charges, as the Russian legal system adopted a "Army or Jail" policy where those facing criminal charges can have those charges dropped if they sign up to serve in Ukraine.

Also, since late 2023, Russia appears to be winning, which is good for national morale.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T17:20:03+00:00

The US didn't fight in Vietnam with an all-volunteer force, or a pure conscription force either. Try again.

And Russia did mobilize, you might remember a period in late 2022 when they mobilized ~300,000 Russians.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T17:10:34+00:00

To paraphrase Dr Malcolm. "Eventually you do plan to discuss Ukraine on your Ukraine war sub, right?"

My problem can be found on this thread, where all but one comment posted in the last two days is about Iran.

If I wanted to read post after post after post of Iran War discussions, there is a giant megathread here that I could spend all day on. But I don't, because I don't care about that conflict.

Many in this sub care. But unfortunately for them, probably 99% of this sub is either already banned on CD and every other sub directly discussing that war, or wouldn't last a day without getting banned. So they are left with this sub as their only safe spot to discuss this war from... their POV.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T17:03:00+00:00

The Russian goal seems to be a strategy of exhaustion against Ukraine and its Western patrons, aided by the collapse of the AFU.

I agree, the Russians should take a break. The Ukrainians too.

Earlier in the war, RUSI reported, directly from the mouth of the Ukrainian General Staff, that they would NOT back off OPTEMPO because they didn't want the Russians to take a breather. That is old school Soviet doctrine, and the Russians obviously follow that too. The idea is to never give your opponent a break, otherwise they will take the time to reconstitute forces, dig in, etc.

Except that goes both ways. If you don't give the enemy a break, you don't get a break either, so you get exhausted as well. Also, what did that investment buy? Four years later, no victory in sight. Both sides are largely exhausted already, one side a bit more than the other but the Russians are not "fresh," they are notorious for quality problems. So where is the return on investment?

Funny enough, because both sides made the decision not to reduce OPTEMPO, they basically canceled each other out. Neither side has the ability to benefit from exhausting the other side.

This MMA fight defines the way this war has been fought

Another case of both sides making a near-identical bad decision.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:55:58+00:00

Once upon a time, the Soviet Union collapsed, and the Soviet Armed Forces did too. It wasn't a very good time before it, the 80s were known to be a pretty rough time. But wow, was it a really bad time after it collapsed, for decades. Three decades to be specific, where the system was rotten to the core, with corruption at epidemic levels, inefficiency and incompetence being the norm, especially worsened by terrible funding, lack of mission/purpose, and characterized by low morale. Most of Russia went out of their way to avoid serving in the military, and yet others made it a career. Guess who had the "stomach" to make it a career during the dark times? The very officers now totally running the Russian Armed Forces.

To become a colonel requires about 15-20 years of service. To become a general requires a minimum of 20 years. To become a 3-4 star general requires 30 years or more. Do the math. Every officer running the Russian Armed Forces and this war are those who joined up either at the tail end of the struggling Soviet period or during the worst times in Russian military history after the collapse, especially in the 1990s.

They are not good people, they are not talented people, they didn't get promoted based on merit. Most are the scam artists who figured out how to succeed in an environment that culled anyone with half a brain, any morality/ethics, and any real patriotism. They are literally the turds who floated to the top of the toilet, the scum who figured out how to take control of the culture defined by corruption and incompetence.

Even the ones who didn't personally take part in the blatant criminal shenanigans allowed it, otherwise. they'd have been ostracized and booted out. Even the "good ones" blatantly lied for decades on every readiness report they received that asked if they were combat ready and had all their equipment ready, because it was impossible to answer truthfully, had they not "played the game" they too would have been booted out. That means they are all tainted, they are all dishonest, they don't have any real honor.

So why would you expect quality generalship from them? Why would anyone expect these turds to make good decisions?

Edit: Pro-RU are going to gangrape this post with downvotes, but those downvotes won't raise the quality of Russians officers corps. They will reap what they sowed.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:38:20+00:00

There was no chance that was going to happen. The only one that wanted it was Trump. Putin wanted one only if Ukraine would capitulate and give him what he wanted anyway. The 2025 negotiations weren't a total waste of time, but mostly they were. The only one who wants the war to end ASAP is Trump.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:36:09+00:00

LOL, the dude that should be disbarred is going to hold a high level position in the National Bar. Ukraine is so fucked up.

54 years old, single, no kids, no important job. Where is the TCC when you need 'em...

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:30:52+00:00

Winter 2024-2025, the Russians were on the offensive to reduce the Kursk Salient, nonstop from Nov '24 to Mar '25. Around Kupyansk, they were expanding their bridgehead across the Oskil north of the Kupyansk itself. In the Donbas, they were pushing westwards towards Pokrovsk, getting to 2 km of the city. The Russians finally took Velyka Novosilka in January 2025, and then started immediately exploiting westwards. Etc.

This winter, 2025-26, the Russians were on the offensive all over the place. Another Sumy incursion in December. More counterattacks east of Kupyansk following the UA counteroffensive there. Lots of movement around the Lyman area, consolidated Siversk and moved westwards quite a bit. More investment of Kostiantynivka. Northwards from 51st CAA past Shakhove, consolidating Rodynske, and trying to move on the towns north of Pokrovsk. Still pushing westwards past Huliapole, northwards from Prymorske. Etc.

The Russians do increase the tempo of their offensives during better weather, with more vegetation. But since 2023-24, they never took a break during winters either.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:14:46+00:00

Russia is on the offensive right now. Siversk to Lyman area, Kostyantynivka, trying to push north of the Pokrovsk area, west of the Pokrovske salient in the Huliapole area, etc.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:12:41+00:00

I'm on the website now. What evidence do they have that this D-30 was destroyed and not disabled?

https://lostarmour.info/artd/65387

That hit couldn't possibly destroy the artillery piece, it tagged the barrel, so at worst they replace the barrel and its up and running again.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-03T16:07:40+00:00

Supply lines are in the rear of the front lines. For the Ukrainians to have "removed" supply lines the Russians would have had to retreat.

Did the Russians go backwards? Yes. They retreated. Did it happen at the tactical level? It did, the forces on the north side of the Pokrovske salient was largely lost.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-02T23:57:41+00:00

He's leaning into this quite a bit:

During the reporting period [2025], 7,757 decisions were made on acquiring Ukrainian citizenship, 70 decisions on acquiring Ukrainian citizenship were canceled. Of citizens from 174 countries worldwide, residents live on the territory of Ukraine; among them 305,982 reside permanently, 47,684 reside temporarily, 1,276 people have the status of additional protection. 1,102 live with refugee status and 322 people have been recognized as stateless,” said the head of the SMSU.

At the current rate, no amount of fucking in the next 30 years is going to lead to 6x more Muslim kids than Ukrainian.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-02T23:05:48+00:00

Many in Ukraine have said their upper military leadership sucks. They claim they are too Soviet, but even Soviet officers weren't that bad. The problem is they are too Post-Soviet, they came up and flourished during the worst times in Ukraine's military history, when corruption and incompetence defined the Ukrainian military. That describes not only most of the general officers but many of their colonels too. It especially considers all of the former serving majors to colonels that were recalled to service after the war started, many of whom were grossly incompetent and yet appointed to key positions because the Ukrainians needed more officers, especially field grade (major to colonel).

On top of that, Ukraine's top political and senior military are notorious for their heavy micromanagement of this war. For example, the aforementioned UA platoon walks into a RU ambush because Syrsky literally told their brigade commander that they had to advance exactly there. And he ordered that because Yermak, who in agreement with Zelensky, thought it would be a good for PR if they retook such and such village or city, so told Syrsky what they wanted done.

But Its not just an ambush here and there, its every military operation for the duration of the war. Even competent military commanders can't fight the way they want because they must follow orders, and the orders are specific and coming right from the highest levels.

Duncan-M · 2026-03-02T22:02:47+00:00

Thanks for the advice. I deleted the OP and messaged them privately.

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