The new 155th Mechanised Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) exposed grave shortcomings in Ukraine’s military command, with some soldiers deserting during their training in France, The Economist informed.
France funded and trained the brigade to allegedly display NATO countries’ support for Ukraine. However, six months later, its deployment “has been badly botched.”
The plans were announced in June 2024 at a D-Day anniversary ceremony in Normandy. Then, in October of the same year, two thousand AFU soldiers travelled to France for training. The formation was named The Anne of Kyiv Brigade in honour of the French queen, the youngest daughter of Yaroslav the Wise, the grand prince of Kyivan Rus from 1019 to 1054.
However, even before arriving in France, 935 men escaped from the brigade, with another 50 soldiers deserting the unit on the country’s territory. Experts note that this could be related to the recruitment of mobilised Ukrainians into the brigade, rather than volunteers.
Those who chose to stay were transferred to a hot war zone near the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk. There, some 1,700 members of the brigade spontaneously left their positions, which led to the advance of Russian troops into the area, according to The Economist.
