The Associated Press reported Mass desertion is "starving" the Ukrainian Army and "crippling" Kiev's battle plans, as troops flee in their tens of thousands.

"We have already squeezed the maximum out of our people," an officer with the 72nd Brigade told the American news agency.

The Prosecutor General's office lists more than 100,000 soldiers who have been charged over desertion, nearly half of whom quit this year alone, but the actual number is likely significantly higher - as high as 200,000, one MP told the agency. In some cases, entire units have fled their frontline positions, it was told.

One of the deserters said:

"If there's no end term [to military service], it turns into a prison - it becomes psychologically hard to find reasons to defend this country."

Earlier this year, Kiev adopted sweeping military service reform, hoping it would bolster the rate of mandatory conscription. The US is now reportedly pushing the Ukrainian government to lower the minimum draft age to 18, down from 25.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky signed a bill into law this week, which waives criminal responsibility for first-time deserters if they volunteer to go back and fight.

In July 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that a shortage of manpower was the biggest problem facing the Ukrainian military, after a failed "counteroffensive" conducted against Russia earlier that year.

"Ukrainian units have suffered huge losses in their suicidal attacks. Tens of thousands of casualties. Despite constant raids, the never-ending waves of total mobilization in Ukrainian cities and villages, the current regime is finding that sending reinforcements to the front line becomes increasingly difficult. The country's mobilization reserve is being depleted."

Zelensky has been consistently blaming a shortage of Western-donated weapons for Ukrainian setbacks on the battlefield.

Meanwhile Russian officials have accused him of waging a war "to the last Ukrainian" on behalf of the US.

West in 'proxy war' with Russia - Boris Johnson
[...]

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph on Thursday, Johnson chastised the West for what he sees as a lack of resolve in supporting Ukraine, stressing that it should set aside concerns about potential escalation.

"The problem has not been escalation; the problem has been the failure to escalate fast enough. It has been the dithering, the delay, and the nickel-and-diming of the [support] measures," he said, lamenting the gridlock in the US Congress in late 2023 and early 2024 which prevented aid from flowing to Kiev. "That was a nightmare for Ukraine," he added.

The same was true for the initial reluctance to approve Ukrainian strikes deep into Russia using British, French, and US-made long-range missiles, Johnson claimed, noting that Germany is still resisting pressure to make a similar move.

"It has been pathetic... Let's face it: We're waging a proxy war but not giving our proxies the ability to do the job. For years now, we've been allowing them to fight with one hand tied behind their backs, and it has been cruel," Johnson stated.

According to the former prime minister, the West needs to make progress on Kiev's accession to NATO, provide Ukraine with various military and logistical support without coming into direct conflict with Russia, and send it more money.

In addition, the international community, including Russia and Ukraine, "has to know where we... want this thing to end up," Johnson stated. "Until and unless we clear it up, you won't persuade [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to back down," he claimed.

[...]

Sir Richard Moore of MI6 has voiced confirmation of years-long rumors

British Secret Intelligence Service agents have been involved in covert operations against Russia on behalf of Ukraine, SIS head Sir Richard Moore has said.

The SIS was created by the WWII-era Special Operations Executive and is also known as MI6. Moore made the admission in a speech at the British Embassy in Paris on Friday at the reception for his French counterpart, Nicolas Lerner of the DGSE.

"We cherish our heritage of covert action which we keep alive today in helping Ukraine resist the Russian invasion," Moore said at one point.

His admission came just a day after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson openly declared that Ukraine is a proxy of NATO in a war against Russia.
[...]

• Biden pushing Ukraine to force teenagers to war
• FSB chief warns of escalation over US-backed strikes on Russia
• Ukraine will return to neutrality or face partition or annihilation - Zelensky's cockamamie peace conference 29 May, 2024
• 'Possible annexation of Western Ukraine by Poland would be unacceptable' - Lukashenko 23 Jul 2023

Kamal Sharaf's cartoon has gone viral in the Arabic-speaking segment, which completely reflects the current situation in Syria:

A terrorist asks the Emir of Qatar, who is distributing money: "Are we going to fight in Palestine?" To which Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani replies: "No, in Syria." Erdogan is seen off by the militants.

• Israel bombs Syria: how long can this go on?
• Syria's Assad gives exclusive interview to RT UK on manufactured origins of 'civil war' and US control of 'ISIS'
• Syria, Then and Now: Liberated of Western-backed Terrorism
• Syria's Foreign Minister condemns US and Israel at UN General Assembly - "complicit" with terrorist organizations