Russia is ‘running out of steam’ in its invasion of Ukraine, the head of MI6 has said. Richard Moore, head of the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service, made the remark while retweeting a Ministry of Defense briefing saying: “The Kremlin is getting desperate.” He then states that Vladimir Putin’s forces have lost “tens of thousands of soldiers” and are using “Soviet-era weapons,” adding: “Russia will not win this unjust war.” Ukraine’s foreign ministry claimed in its latest update that 40,670 Russian soldiers have been killed and nearly 4,000 armored personnel carriers have been destroyed. Other equipment destroyed is said to include 1,759 tanks, 222 aircraft and 190 helicopters. Volunteer battalions are being formed across Russia to bolster depleted frontline forces, according to CNN. Analysts believe more than 30,000 volunteers may have signed up to help Moscow’s “special military operation”. They are believed to have been lured from poorer areas with the offer of quick cash. Kateryna Stepanenko, a Russian researcher at the Institute for the Study of War in Washington, told CNN: “Some battalions will be engaged solely in combat support and combat support operations (such as logistics or signal battalions), while others will reinforce pre-existing military units or form battle battalions”. “Short-term training is unlikely to turn volunteers with no prior experience into effective soldiers in any unit.” It follows reports that Putin has been recruiting convicted murderers and jailed military spies to bolster his ranks, with hundreds of prisoners signing up in exchange for pardons. Contact our news team by emailing us at [email protected] For more stories like this, check out our news page.
