KEY POINTS

  • The Georgian Legion commander said they had a higher opinion of the Russian army prior to the war
  • The commander added that Russian soldiers are dying due to their unpreparedness
  • More than 37,000 Russian soldiers have died in the war so far, says Ukraine

Russian soldiers who joined the war in Ukraine are large in the grouping but are highly unprepared and unprofessional, a Georgian legion commander said.

Mamuka Mamulashvili, the commander of the Georgian Legion fighting alongside Ukrainian troops amid the war, also said the professionalism of Russian soldiers was comparable to that of the fighters of Somalia or other nations that do not focus on their service members.

“We had a much higher opinion of them (the Russian army - ed.) than they actually turned out to be. This is a completely unprepared grouping of troops, although it is quite large. In terms of professionalism, it is no better than the troops of Somalia or any other country, which specifically don’t particularly pay attention to their army personnel,” Mamulashvii said in an interview with Ukrainian Pravda.

The commander also added that he thinks corruption in the Russian military would continue to spread, adding that it helped the Georgian Legion and the Ukrainian army to push back against the invaders.

“Also, thank God, there’s corruption in the Russian army. It has helped us a lot and I hope it continues to expand. So as a military man, I would say... I prefer to not underestimate the enemy, but professionally they were not even prepared for what they were going to see in Ukraine. And many of them died,” he added.

Several previous reports noted the unpreparedness of Russian soldiers deployed to the war in Ukraine. In June, a Russian prisoner of war said they were informed that they were being deployed to Ukraine for a “three-day peacekeeping mission” and would be taken back home on March 1. Additionally, soldiers in his brigade believed Ukraine would be “warm and interesting” like Syria.

In May, a contract serviceman serving in Russia’s National Guard revealed that Russian soldiers deployed to the war were being asked to use their own money to buy the equipment and gear they need on the battlefield.

According to estimates from the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, as of Sunday, at least 37,300 Russian soldiers died in the war.

Many of the Ukrainians who have swelled the ranks of the army following the invasion have received training in a forest previously occupied by Russian soldiers
Many of the Ukrainians who have swelled the ranks of the army following the invasion have received training in a forest previously occupied by Russian soldiers AFP / Sergei SUPINSKY
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