A Ukrainian serviceman of the 82nd Separate Air Assault Brigade prepares for combat Challenger 2 tank in an undisclosed location near frontline in Zaporizhzhia region, amid the Russia n invasion of Ukraine. In its quest to fill the dwindling ranks of its infantry, Ukraine has turned to recruiting prisoners to join the fight against Russia , and more than four thousand have applied so far.
"You know, five years behind these walls leave their mark. You've seen a lot and understood a lot. You're not scared of anything anymore," he said.Ukraine, whose population of about 38 million compares with Russia's 144 million, has struggled to recruit enough soldiers, particularly to fight in frontline positions where they bear the brunt of enemy attacks and suffer heavy losses.
The 5th Brigade's representative, who introduced himself as Vladyslav, told Reuters his brigade had recruited around 90 people from the prison, and were recruiting in others. A Ukrainian artilleryman stands next to a 152mm towed gun-howitzer D-20 on the front line near Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine. The 3rd Brigade's representative, Oleh Petrenko, said his brigade would not treat convicts differently to other men.Early on in the full-scale war, private Russian mercenary group Wagner recruited tens of thousands of Russian prisoners to fight in Ukraine, offering them a full pardon if they survived six months at the front.
Ukrainian servicemen practice firing during a military exercise in the Kharkiv region amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The minister has previously said he expects between 10 000 and 20 000 inmates to sign up in total.Reuters was invited into a local courthouse, and saw how a judge approved the application of a man serving a sentence for armed robbery.
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