As Putin continues to mount pressure with accumulating forces, tanks and missiles along the Ukrainian border, volunteer army unit members in Kyiv were pictured training with fake wooden guns today.
Members of Ukraine’s Territorial Defence Forces were seen wielding the cutout props in unusual training drills as dozens of civilians have been joining army reserves.
However this is unlikely to inspire fear in the Russian president, as Ukraine now estimates Russia’s manpower is up to 130,000, with a top US army general calling it the biggest accumulation of forces since the Cold War.
Members of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer military units of the Armed Forces, train with fake wooden guns close to Kyiv, Ukraine today
Russian servicemen of the 150th division of the Southern Military District shooting from howitzers 2A65 Msta-B during a training in the Rostov region, Russia yesterday
A civilian army volunteer with a fake gun in Kyiv today as Putin continues to mount pressure with accumulating forces, tanks and missiles along the Ukrainian border
Videos seen of Russian army drills include intimidating tanks, howitzers, fighter jets and ships amongst other things.
While Putin has, while gradually building up forces, not confirmed anything about a full-scale invasion, an ally close to him today also claimed it would take 48 hours ‘maximum’ to invade the ‘outnumbered’ Kyiv and take Ukraine.
Speaking to Znak media, Konstantin Malofeev – who runs an investment group and a staunchly pro-Kremlin media added: ‘Open military conflict between Russia and Ukraine cannot be a war, or, at least, a long-term war, because the difference in military potential is so big that there can be only an operation for forcing the peace.’
However a new video from today shows Ukrainian soldiers training with British NLAW anti-tank weapons for the first time.
Members of Ukraine’s Territorial Defence Forces were seen wielding the cutout props in unusual training drills as dozens of civilians have been joining army reserves.
The drills in Lviv region come as Russia continues to tighten its military noose around Ukraine while officially denying any intention to invade.
Earlier this week another video online also showed volunteer forces maintaining a Soviet-era pre-World War II machine gun.
The instructor demonstrated the use of a DP-27 light machine gun to the volunteer army unit, which consists of some 80,000 volunteers in 25 brigades across the country, The Drive reports.
In contrast Putin’s arsenal of weapons boasts devastating manpower and potential danger.
A Ukrainian service member fires a next generation light anti-tank weapon (NLAW) supplied by Britain during drills at Ukraine’s International Peacekeeping Security Centre near Yavoriv in the Lviv region, Ukraine yesterday
Tanks of the Russian Southern Military District’s 150th Rifle Division take part in a military exercise at Kadamovsky Range on Thursday
During a Pentagon press briefing yesterday, Joint Chiefs Of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley told reporters that while it’s not definite that Russia will go through with an attack, the consequences of offensive action could be devastating.
He said: ‘We don’t think final decisions have been made to conduct any sort of offensive operation into Ukraine by the Russians, and we firmly believe there’s still room for a diplomatic outcome here.
‘Having said that, given the type of forces that are arrayed – the ground maneuver forces, the artillery, the ballistic missiles, the air forces – all of it packaged together, if that was unleashed on Ukraine, it would be significant, very significant, and would result in a significant amount of casualties.
‘And you can imagine what that might look like in dense urban areas, along roads and so on and so forth. It would be horrific. It would be terrible.’
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel
Source link
