Russian public crowdfund for supplies as soldiers struggle

PRO-WAR Russians are crowdfunding supplies for soldiers who have complained that Moscow has failed to arm them properly.

Supplies ranging from rifle scopes to boots for soldiers have been sent to Ukraine, paid for by patriotic Russians through fundraising initiatives.

The grassroots campaign, backed by the Kremlin and its Telegram channels, has published photos of soldiers carrying civilian drones and radios, all purchased by ordinary Russians.

In Belgorod, southern Russia, 35-yearold Sophia volunteers in a crowdfunding programme. She said the success of the nationwide campaign showed that “patriotic Russians” supported Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The money comes in from all over the country,” she said.

The Kremlin has banned dissent and talk of war, instead calling it a Special Operation.

It has also ramped up its propaganda drive, built around the notions that Putin was forced to invade Ukraine to deal with a Nazi threat and also that the invasion is going smoothly.

Sophia said that thermal imaging equipment and shovels were popular requests, but she denied that the Russian army was poorly equipped.

“The military are special people,” she said. “They think ahead and often ask for reserves so that they can prevent shortages.”

Western intelligence, though, gives a different picture. It has said that the war has humiliated Russia and that at least 15,000 soldiers have died because of poor leadership, planning and equipment.

Reports have emerged of Russian soldiers being resupplied with soggy lavatory paper and Soviet-era field telephones rather than modern weapons.

Ukrainian soldiers have out-armed their opponent, often because of the advanced weaponry sent to them from Western allies and Ukraine’s own crowdfunding efforts.