The Largest Mass Surrender: Russian Soldiers Describe Hunger And Exhaustion
- 2.10.2026, 8:28
- 2,494
New testimonies from Russian military personnel taken prisoner during Operation "Vivaldi."
More than 250 Russian servicemen, including dozens of officers, were taken prisoner during the three phases of Operation “Vivaldi” in the Liman sector. The prisoners described hunger, exhaustion, the failure to evacuate the wounded, and administrative chaos within Russian units—a situation that increasingly leaves soldiers unable to carry out their commanders’ orders.
This was reported by the Third Army Corps. The military released a video showing the mass surrender of the occupiers and their conversations with the corps commander, Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky.
Russian soldiers spoke of hunger and exhaustion
In the released footage, the captured Russians say that due to a lack of provisions at their positions, they were forced to eat nettles and tree bark, as well as hunt wild animals. According to them, the water situation was so dire that they collected rainwater to quench their thirst and sometimes even drank their own urine.
The captured Russians say that due to a lack of provisions, they had to eat nettles and tree bark.
One of the Russian officers confirmed during a conversation with Biletsky that troops are dying en masse from starvation and exhaustion.
According to the prisoners, wounded Russian soldiers are not being evacuated from their positions. Therefore, their only chance of survival is to crawl to an evacuation point on their own.
Russian Commanders Are Losing Control
Another reason cited for the mass surrenders in the Third Army Corps is the administrative chaos within Russian headquarters. According to Ukrainian military officials, under pressure from the “Troika,” Russian units began to lose control of the situation on the battlefield.
In particular, not only infantrymen but also military personnel performing specialized tasks are increasingly being taken prisoner.
“Several Russian regiments are now falling apart. That is precisely why it is not even infantry who are being captured, but UAV pilots, mortar operators, and electronic warfare specialists. We encounter infantry in the trenches less often than specialists,” Biletsky stated.
According to him, this indicates problems not only at the level of individual positions but also within the command structure of Russian units.
“Capture is the best thing that could have happened to you”
Captured Russian officers also reported that about eight months ago, the situation in this sector changed dramatically. According to them, the advance of Russian troops halted after the confrontation with the Third Army Corps intensified, and it became increasingly difficult to carry out orders from the command.
At the same time, according to the Ukrainian side, Russian military personnel found themselves caught between threats from their own command and the practical inability to properly supply their units.
Addressing the prisoners, Biletsky stated that surrendering in their situation was their only chance to survive.
“Capture is the best thing that could have happened to you, because in the near future your military will find itself in an even worse hell,” said the corps commander.
Over the course of three seasons of Operation “Vivaldi” the Third Army Corps, under the command of Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky, liberated 176 km² in the Liman sector, eliminated more than 5,000 enemy troops, and took 250 Russian servicemen prisoner.
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