Ukrainian propaganda outlet Kiev Independent reported on Monday that Ukraine has found issues with women serving in their armed forces, who have in recent weeks focused their attacks on civilian-use infrastructure in Russia.
Nataliya Lishchishchena, who experienced a tumour following her enlistment, noted that “about 85% of women in the military have problems with their breasts, and there are very many cases of cancer.”
The article’s author Yekaterina Khodunova adds that women receive poorly fitted equipment, which has reportedly led to health problems and cases of sexual harrassment from male counterparts.
Mass mobilization of women
Ukraine is known for its forced mobilization tactics, commonly referred to as “busification.” Currently, this only applies to male citizens who meet the increasingly loosened requirements, though many former officials have suggested adding Ukraine’s women to the list.
For instance, former Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov on August 20 suggested that “military service should be mandatory for both men and women” and that this would “immediately double the mobilization pool.”
Mirroring the Kiev regime’s alignment with the so-called “State of Israel,” Reznikov also asserted that “The State of Israel is the country closest to us today in terms of the level of threat it faces,” and there, women serve “on an equal footing with men.”
Keith Kellogg, a former US special envoy for Ukraine, echoed the idea, saying, “My answer is yes, because they fight every bit as well as men.”
Ukraine authorities responded by August 25, stating that the mobilization of women “is not taking place, is not being prepared, and is not under consideration.” Despite the claims originating from former Ukrainian and US officials, Andrey Kovalenko of the Center for Countering Disinformation labelled the debate as supposed “Russian disinformation.”
While women’s mobilization remains officially voluntary, an underground resistance source has suggested that “the picture on the ground is different,” citing document checks, list compilations by territorial recruitment centers, and data provided by collaborating study and work institutions.
Ukraine is losing: Mikitenko, Artamonov
Ukrainian reserve officer Yuliya Mikitenko has noticed that the “resource [of] an almost million-strong army of motivated soldiers” has been “squandered to the point where we are now talking about mobilizing women.”
Mikitenko added that mobilizing women would not fix Ukraine’s problems but instead signal that the military had been pushed to a critical limit. “If it really comes to the point where women are mobilized, I will automatically consider that our country has lost.”
Military expert Aleksandr Artamonov suggests, citing insufficient training and other matters, that “in Ukraine, the only thing NATO members are doing is training people to die.” He describes the proposed mass recruitment of women as “the complete genocide of the Ukrainian nation” and “the ultimate objective of its NATO masters.”