Ukraine’s manpower problem is growing worse as forces have moved from the frontlines of the war against Russia to stage an incursion into Russian territory.
Ukrainian forces pierced through Russia’s border last week and have now seized more than 400 miles of territory in the Kursk region, in a surprise incursion that caught Moscow off-guard. But the troops that were sent to Kursk were transferred away from other key locations, further exhausting Ukraine’s already alarming lack of manpower against Russian forces on the frontlines of the war, according to the WSJ.
“If we’re supposed to have five or six people in a position, we’ll have two or three,” a 45-year-old army major stationed near the frontlines of the war in eastern Ukraine told the WSJ, adding that the manpower problem had grown so urgent that even cooks and mechanics were being deployed. “It’s a matter of time before the enemy finds a weak spot.”
A Ukrainian serviceman installs extra protection on a Soviet-made T-72 tank, in the Sumy region, near the border with Russia, on August 12, 2024. (Photo by ROMAN PILIPEY/AFP via Getty Images)
One Ukrainian commander told the WSJ that when his forces arrived in eastern Ukraine, they had an equal number of troops as Russia did, but now Russia has a manpower advantage of roughly five to one. Only roughly one-fifth of casualties are replaced by new recruits, he said.
The average age of soldiers serving in Ukraine’s infantry is now above 40, according to the WSJ.
“The situation doesn’t allow me to even ask for days off — I’d feel bad leaving,” a 46-year-old platoon commander told the WSJ. “Once it stabilizes, I’ll ask for a break.”
Further complicating matters is Ukraine’s lack of needed military equipment against Russia. While Ukraine has received tens of billions worth of military aid from the U.S. and the West, it has not been enough to match Russia’s armaments, some members of Ukrainian brigades positioned along the eastern front told the WSJ. Ukraine is also limited in its domestic weapons production capabilities, while Russia’s defense industrial base has remained relatively stable and has received help from other Western adversaries, such as Iran and North Korea.
Ukrainian tank crew take a break while operating a Soviet-made T-72 tank in the Sumy region, near the border with Russia, on August 12, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by ROMAN PILIPEY/AFP via Getty Images)
“The Russians have more everything than us—more people, more guns, more shells, more ammunition,” a 46-year-old Ukrainian commander told the WSJ. “In the end, it makes us withdraw.”
Still, the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk has caught Russia off-guard and forced Moscow to transfer thousands of troops to the region to try to regain control, U.S. officials told CNN. Ukrainian forces have reportedly seized more Russian territory in roughly the course of a week than Russian forces have taken in eight months, according to The Telegraph.
The open question now is what Ukrainian forces in Kursk plan to do next. A top Ukrainian official recently said that the incursion is meant to coerce Russia into withdrawing from seized Ukrainian territory.
But privately, U.S. and Western officials told CNN that they were concerned Ukrainian forces could not hold Kursk for long.
“We’re in close touch with Ukrainian officials, as you might expect we would be, and will continue those conversations,” a State Department spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Putin is the one who invaded Ukraine, and Ukraine is defending itself against that aggression. This is the Kremlin’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Russia can end this war of choice at any time by withdrawing from Ukraine.”
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