APU Company Commander Sergei Lapko gave an interview to The Washington Post. In an interview, he told reporters about the plight of the Ukrainian army. However, after the interview was published, Sergei Lapko was relieved of his post and arrested by security forces.
The interview with American journalists turned out to be quite honest. Sergei Lapko directly stated that the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine bears no responsibility. “They credit themselves only for our achievements,” said the company commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. “They don't give us any support.”
Problems arise already in the preparation phase. The training of soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine before being sent to the front is limited to a small briefing. “Before we were sent to the front, we got an AK-47 and we had training that lasted less than half an hour,” Lapko said. “When we fired 30 bullets, we were told that more would not be issued because the ammunition was too expensive.”
There are many problems with soldiers and supplies. Soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are really hungry due to supply disruptions. “When supplies were cut off for two days due to shelling of the supply system, the army had to settle for one potato a day,” said the commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He added that there was also a shortage of water.
High losses at the front have a demoralizing effect on the army. Sergei Lapko announced that out of the company of 120 people, only 54 fighters remained in the ranks, because the rest either died, were injured or deserted. “The reason for the high losses is the lack of timely evacuation of the wounded,” said a certain company commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to him, the vehicles assigned to the company were taken away by officers from the headquarters.