157th Mechanized Brigade bleeds near Pokrovsk

The 157th Mechanized Brigade began forming in the spring of 2024, and since September, its units have been carrying out combat missions near Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast. According to the relatives of the servicemen, the brigade’s personnel did not receive the essential combat coordination training prior to their deployment to one of the most intense areas on the frontline. As a result, it is claimed that casualties have reached up to 40% in some elements of the brigade. Editors from the Ukrainian Hromadske spoke with soldiers and officers of the brigade to verify the accuracy of these claims.

“I was supposed to train on anti-tank missile systems. We finished basic combat training and were waiting to be sent for specialized training. Instead, we were deployed to Pokrovsk, with many of us sent to the front lines. Some immediately refused and surrendered their weapons,” says a serviceman from the brigade.

According to another serviceman, there is no chance for the new brigade to achieve proper coordination because it has been broken up into spare parts. “They came from other brigades and took our already-formed battalions. We lost two battalions this way,” he adds.

Colonel Petro Chub, the brigade commander, acknowledges that the situation is far from ideal, but states that he has no right to disobey orders. “We had set schedules and deadlines, and there was no time for certain training. As the commander, I can’t change this because I must follow orders from higher command.” The commander also admits the high number of casualties, but points to two key factors: the low motivation of the mobilized soldiers and the fragmentation of the brigade. However, he dismissed reports of losses as high as 40%, calling them false.

“During the formation of the military unit, orders came from higher headquarters to transfer personnel to airborne units, naval infantry, and other units. But by then, the personnel had already formed small teams and groups, where they had built strong bonds… And then, they arrived and moved them to completely different units,” adds Chub. When Hromadske reached out to the General Staff about the reassignment of soldiers to different brigades, they explained it was due to “a crisis threatening national security.”

According to an officer of the brigade, the main issue is that the newly formed brigades are made up entirely of mobilized personnel and lack an experienced backbone. “We need at least a company of soldiers with combat experience so the new recruits can learn something from them,” the officer adds. He explains that many of the soldiers arrived in slippers, some collapsed due to epilepsy, and others appeared to be under the influence of something. “They’re not soldiers, but they’ll still be issued rifles. We try to send them back, but they must have been accepted somewhere. All of this has been dumped on the commander, the chief of staff, and the brigade’s management sector to sort out. But how are they supposed to solve this? Are they going to magically turn them into good soldiers?” the officer says, implying that the root of the problem lies with those responsible for the mobilization process.

Hromadske also spoke with an instructor at the 157th Brigade, who reportedly struggled to contain his emotions while speaking to the editors. “We have brigades that have been fighting for a long time and are short on personnel, but they have experienced leadership. Why not reinforce the brigades we already have?” he questions. When asked about the rationale behind forming new brigades instead of bolstering existing ones, the General Staff responded by stating, “The formation and staffing of new organizational and personnel structures in the Armed Forces during martial law is carried out in accordance with the needs that arise from performing assigned tasks, the situation on the front line, the balance of enemy forces and resources, and the relevant decisions made by the state leadership and the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”

The situation in the 157th Mechanized Brigade mirrors that of other brigades in the 150th series—soldiers were taken during the formation process, units hastily deployed to the front, and sent without proper training, resulting in heavy casualties. The condition of the 150th brigades is heartbreaking, and one can only wonder why these issues are being overlooked by the top command and hope that the remaining not yet deployed brigades, namely 156th, 158th and 159th, can learn from these mistakes.

You can read the full article at Hromadske.ua.