The soldier says he is wounded and ‘like a sieve’ in the clip. (Image: NC/GETTY)
Battle-weary Russian soldiers have offered stark insights into their plight on the frontline in Ukraine in a frank video circulating on social media – with one simply saying: “I am spitting blood.”
The unverified clip, shot in an undisclosed location—shared by former Ukrainian interior ministry adviser Anton Geraschenko, among others—shows what appears to be a beleaguered-looking Russian soldier recording his experiences on mobile phones.
One says: “Out of eight people, only three are alive.
“We’re wounded. They, the Ukrainians, uses tanks, FPV [drones], everything.”
Grimacing, the man continues: “There’s something wrong with my ribs, I’’m spitting blood.”
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“We’re at our positions, and we have f*cking nothing to eat. Look at the f*ckery that’s going on behind the zero line.”
A Russian serviceman recorded a video in which he talked about how fellow soldiers do not want to deliver food to them at zero line so as not to become victims… https://t.co/q2Ub8YCC8p pic.twitter.com/BGyhAbs3l7
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) December 2, 2024
In separate footage shot in daylight, he adds: “How am I doing?
“I’m lying here like a sieve, all shot up. I’m surviving as best I can.
“I’m trying to crawl out. Not good at it, but I do my best.”
Mr Geraschenko, who describes the film as “the realities of a meat assault”, comments: “There is no evacuation, soldiers are forced to survive on their own, and the command does not care about these ‘extra’ people.”
In a separate clip also shared by Mr Geraschenko, a soldier complains that fellow soldiers do not even want to deliver food to them at the front.
Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Image: Getty)
The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has illustrated how Russia under President Vladimir Putin has utilised raw recruits as disposable assets in a strategy that many observers have described as a “meat grinder.”
The grim term, employed by analysts and media alike, encapsulates the brutal attritional warfare where human life is seemingly subordinated to strategic objectives.
Russia’s use of poorly trained conscripts and mobilised civilians has been a cornerstone of its military approach, aimed at overwhelming Ukrainian defences with sheer numbers despite immense casualties.
Reports indicate that entire battalions are deployed with minimal preparation, reflecting a disregard for soldier welfare in pursuit of territorial gains.
The “meat grinder” metaphor has been widely adopted to characterise Russia’s approach. Stavros Atlamazoglou of The National Interest notes the staggering scale of casualties, with losses reaching up to 8,500 in a matter of days during intense offensives.
Regardless of the human cost, the country’s deliberate strategy of grinding down the enemy reflects a war of attrition reliant on replenishable manpower.
The Royal United Services Institute in London has also highlighted how Russia’s tactics involve waves of infantry, often inadequately equipped, bearing the brunt of frontline engagements.
These raw recruits are often sent to die in relentless assaults against fortified Ukrainian positions.
Critics argue that this approach dehumanises soldiers, reducing them to mere numbers in the Kremlin’s calculus. The Institute for the Study of War has described Russia’s heavy reliance on mass mobilisation as unsustainable long-term, with morale among troops plummeting.
Analysts have likened this to past conflicts where Soviet forces suffered catastrophic losses for incremental gains, highlighting a continuity in sacrificing personnel to achieve military goals.
The term “meat assault” captures the harrowing reality of a conflict where human lives are expendable in pursuit of territorial ambitions.
Ukraine’s Defence Ministry claims Russia has lost 745,700 personnel since the start of the war, plus equipment, including 9,486 tanks and 19,419 armoured fighting vehicles.
