About 1,700 soldiers in a Ukrainian unit equipped by the West and trained in France were AWOL before a shot was fired.
At least 50 members of the newly formed 155th Mechanized Brigade, one of the few brigades operating Leopard 2 main battle tanks, disappeared while conducting exercises in France.
When it first entered the war, at least 1,700 soldiers were absent without leave at multiple locations.
The mass withdrawal comes ahead of the brigade’s deployment to Pokrovsk, a key logistical hub for Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s offensive in the eastern Donetsk region.
Kiev Anne’s Brigade conducted nine months of training in western Ukraine, Poland and France
Taking part in fighting in recent days, it has suffered heavy losses, reportedly including a number of tanks and armored vehicles.
This prompted Ukraine’s State Investigative Service to investigate the seemingly chaotic formation of the 155th Regiment.
Also known as Kiev’s Anne Brigade, the brigade is expected to have more than 5,800 soldiers and be equipped with some of the best equipment, including Panther tanks and French Kaiser 155mm howitzers.
Last June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron announced the $900 billion ( £747 billion) project.
Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron announced joint military projects worth $900 billion last June – Ludovic MARIN/AFP
The brigade spent nine months training in western Ukraine, Poland and France as part of Mr Zelensky’s efforts to create 14 new brigades equipped and prepared by the West.
According to reports in November, about 500 of them were still missing.
Ukrainian war correspondent Yuri Butusov wrote: “This is indeed a crime, but not a crime of soldiers and officers, but a crime of the Supreme Commander, the leaders of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff, who continue to work on new projects A waste of lives and public funds instead of strengthening experienced, combat-capable brigades.
Analysts watching the conflict have questioned Kiev’s strategy of using recruits and equipment donations to form rookie brigades rather than replenishing the country’s existing war-torn forces.
Butusov noted in a report on the composition of the 155th Infantry Division that the division suffered from problems due to offsets.
Recruitment for the brigade began in June last year but was hampered by some 2,500 recruits being diverted to supplement other units before training could begin.
The remaining 1,924 volunteers were sent to France, but only 51 of them had more than one year of military experience.
Most of them (1,414) had joined the Ukrainian army within two months before being sent overseas for training.
The brigade is equipped with some of the best equipment, including Panther tanks – Fabian Bimmer/Getty Images
While training in France, the brigade continued to recruit new recruits, and more than 700 of its soldiers fled and remained in Ukraine between October and November.
When the 155th Squadron finally deployed to Pokrovsk, the state did not provide it with any drones (the main method of battlefield reconnaissance) and electronic warfare jammers.
Serhii Sternenko, a Ukrainian social media influencer and military fundraiser, said he recently sent equipment to the brigade despite a lack of government supplies.
The brigade received the cash from Kiev to purchase the drone only 10 days after entering the battle.
“As a result, brand-new Leopard-2A4 tanks and VAB armored vehicles suffered losses during the first attempts to use enemy drones on the front lines,” Butusov wrote.
A few days after the brigade was sent to the front, Colonel Dmytro Ryumshin was relieved of his duties as brigade commander.
“Isn’t it foolish to create a new brigade and equip it with such equipment when the existing equipment is incomplete,” said Bohdan Krotvych, chief of staff of the Ukrainian Azov Brigade.
Butusov added: “The servicemen of the brigade became hostages to Zelensky’s public relations plan, which the authorities did not try to implement effectively and efficiently.”
Thereafter, the brigade was effectively disbanded and its troops assigned to the battle-hardened brigades already defending Pokrovsk.
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