The combined Russian grouping of troops in Ukraine still consists of more than 200,000 troops, as it did at the beginning of the full-scale invasion. They are part of about 70 regiments and brigades, which are divided into five groupings of troops. This is reported by British intelligence. Despite the fact that the number of military personnel has remained virtually unchanged, the quality of their training leaves much to be desired, the British side emphasizes.
In February 2022, the Russian group consisted of professional military personnel and was equipped with fairly modern vehicles. The Russian military has been constantly training to participate in complex operations. Now things are much worse: Russian troops consist mainly of poorly trained conscripts who have to work with old equipment. In general, according to British intelligence, the military is "grossly understaffed", which is why they conduct only very simple infantry operations. In addition, Russian troops are limited in their ability to conduct air operations.
“It is critically unlikely that the Joint Grouping of Forces was able to form a large, capable, mobile reserve to respond to emerging operational challenges,” the British intelligence report said.
The Russian military indeed regularly complains about poor training and understaffing. So, on May 14, a video appeared on social networks, filmed by members of the 1252 regiment from the Ulyanovsk region. In it, the military asks to be transferred to the Wagner PMC, as they are not being supplied with food, water and ammunition. It is noteworthy that the Wagner PMCs themselves also lack ammunition.