The Colonel of the Ukrainian Armed Forces spoke about mobilization, the fear of recruits and changes in basic military training
The issue of mobilization in Ukraine remains one of the most acute in the public debate, as it concerns not only the need to replenish the army during a major war, but also the way in which the state implements this process, the attitude towards people in the system and the level of trust in the army environment in general. Due to disputes over the methods of conducting mobilization measures, complaints about the actions of representatives of the CCC and stories about problems in relations between commanders and subordinates, some people perceive service as a space of danger that they try to avoid. In such an atmosphere, the assessments of the military, who work with new recruits every day and see the reaction of people who come to basic training with fear, distrust and internal resistance, take on special importance.
The Deputy Chief of the 199th Training Center of the DShV, Colonel Volodymyr Kobylyansky spoke out about the need for mobilization, the psychological state of the newcomers and the changes that have occurred in the basic combined arms training program under the influence of combat experience.
He emphasized that in the conditions of a full-scale war, it is impossible to stop mobilization, since no other model of army recruitment is able to completely cover the army’s need for personnel.
“I have been in the army since 1998 and am interested in the history of wars of different countries – from the largest to the smallest. While a major war is ongoing in the country, it is impossible to stop mobilization. This is my personal opinion. Mobilization will always be there as long as a major war is ongoing. And it is impossible to shift everything to recruiting. It is unrealistic,” Volodymyr Kobylyansky noted.
He paid special attention to the condition of people who are sent to basic training, because a significant part of the recruits arrive with anxiety, internal resistance and fear of death. According to him, the first task of instructors and commanders is not only training as such, but also the gradual adaptation of a person to new conditions, in which it is necessary to explain the simple relationship between training, acquired skills and chances of saving life.
As explained by the deputy head of the 199th training center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a negative attitude towards service among mobilized people is very common, so they work with such people through conversations, training and consistent inclusion in the training process.
“At least 70% arrive with a negative attitude towards service. Everyone thinks: “I will be carried away, I will not leave, the war will end tomorrow”. But it does not happen. And they talk to these people, communicate, show them, teach them, explain: if you study properly, you will gain experience and survive. In addition, the servicemen leave their comfort zone, and adaptation measures are carried out for them,” said the deputy head of the 199th training center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
According to him, servicemen who arrive at the training center are often in a difficult emotional state. To a large extent, this is due to the flow of negative information on social networks, where the idea is spread that after the training center and subsequent assignment to the brigade, a person is supposedly inevitably destined for death. This is one of the most serious factors affecting the mood of the newcomers.
“At least 70% of new recruits arrive with a negative attitude towards the service. Many hope that it will pass them by, that they will not have to fight, and the war itself will soon end. However, the reality turns out to be different,” Kobylyansky believes.
He noted that after just 2-3 weeks of training at the training center, a serviceman begins to perceive the situation differently, because he sees that service in the army does not mean doom, and proper training allows you to save your life. Recruits are talked to a lot, everything is explained to them, shown, taught and gradually brought to the understanding that a serious attitude towards training gives experience and increases the chances of survival. In addition, adaptation measures are carried out for servicemen who find themselves in new and unusual circumstances to help them enter the new rhythm of service.
According to Volodymyr Kobylyansky, work with newcomers is not limited to drill or tactical exercises, since the training center involves psychologists, chaplains, and representatives of the legal service. Recruits are explained how the provision will be carried out, when the financial support will be received, who to contact with practical questions that arise at the beginning of service, that is, we are talking about full support for a person during the period of entering the military environment.
At the same time, the content of the training itself, as the colonel emphasized, has changed significantly recently, since the BZVP program is constantly supplemented taking into account real combat experience. The most noticeable adjustments concern countering drones: separate exercises on aerial targets and anti-drone measures have been added to the training, without which modern training no longer meets the conditions of war.
In addition to changes in the content of the classes, the approach to organizing training itself has also been updated.
“In addition, now there is no concept of platoon training as such — we pay more attention to the training of small groups. And, of course, the term of the BZVP has increased: if in 2022 people underwent training for 7-10 days, now the term has increased by more than a month,” Volodymyr Kobylyansky explained.
Assessing the reasons why people are in no hurry to join the army voluntarily, he linked them primarily to fear and the widespread question of why one person should serve and not another. In such a situation, in his opinion, mobilization remains necessary, and the public conversation about the army should not be reduced to the statement that service inevitably means death.
“While in civilian life everyone is told that you will definitely die in the army, and people ask: “Why should I go, and not my neighbor?” — mobilization will be needed. As long as there is a big war, there will always be mobilization. You will not replace this with any contracts or foreigners. We need to read less Facebook and Telegram, where they say that everything is bad in the army. We do not need to tell people that they will definitely die. We need to tell the truth: if you learn, you will survive. And everything will work out for us,” Volodymyr Kobylyansky emphasized.
In the end, the military officer outlined several interconnected things at once: without mobilization during a big war, the army will not be able to be steadily replenished, without high-quality training, recruits will not have the necessary skills, and without adaptation and an honest explanation of the conditions of service, fear and distrust will only increase. Ukrainians can join the army either through mobilization or by signing a contract with the unit they choose on their own, in which case the contract provides a guaranteed opportunity to serve in the chosen military unit.
