Russian Soldiers Willing To Shoot Generals Who Force Them To Go On The Frontline

Russian soldiers fighting in the war in Ukraine are now willing to shoot their military leaders who order them to join the frontlines, according to Ukrainian intelligence information.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) on Tuesday released a recording of an intercepted phone call between a Russian soldier and an unidentified woman detailing a standoff between 215 soldiers belonging to the 36th Army and Russian Gen. Valeriy Solodchuk, who leads the unit. The soldier said his group refused to follow Solodchuk after he ordered them to go on the frontline, leading the general to threaten the rebels with violence.

"He started waving his gun and shooting. He says 'I'll whack you if you don't f**king go there!'" the general warned, according to the Russian soldier. "Then, a kid says to him, 'Go ahead, whack!' F**k, he pulled out a grenade, pulled a pin and says: 'Come on, shoot me! We'll blow up together.' That's it. The special forces guys also started pointing their guns at us. So, we pointed our guns at them."

The soldier added that Gen. Solodchuk got on a military vehicle and drove away following the incident. It is unclear where the Russian leader was headed.

The recording is the latest in a series of evidence showing declining morale and mutinies among Russian soldiers.

On Monday, the British Ministry of Defense said Russia was suffering from multiple localized mutinies, noting the Kremlin’s lack of experience and credible commanders will likely exacerbate the dire situation.

Last week, it was also revealed that at least 115 Russian national guardsmen, a unit also known as Rosgvardia, were fired for refusing to fight in the war in Ukraine. A court filing revealed the guardsmen returned to a duty station after the orders were given, The Guardian reported.

The incident was revealed after the men filed a collective lawsuit challenging their sacking. The lawsuit has been dismissed after the judge determined that the soldiers were rightfully fired for "refusing to perform an official assignment."

Reports of mutinies among Russian troops come as the war stretches into its fourth month. Since the start of the invasion on Feb. 24, at least 30,500 Russian soldiers are believed to have died, according to estimates published Tuesday by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense.