Moscow has previously announced plans to create a large reserve force amid the ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensive
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu has inspected newly formed military units during drills based on combat experience gained during the Ukraine conflict.
In a statement on Saturday, the ministry said that Shoigu had checked “the organization of combat training of contract soldiers in newly formed… military units” at the training grounds of the Southern Military District, without specifying the exact location.
The military personnel are receiving instruction in tactics and weapons proficiency while learning how to drive and fire from tanks, with a focus on how to destroy Ukraine’s Western-supplied hardware. The entire intensified combat training course takes 38 days, the ministry said.
Shoigu inspected troops that are honing their combat skills on Russian T-90 tanks, the ministry noted, adding that servicemembers have a high opinion of the advanced armor, the statement read.
The ministry also shared a two-minute clip from the training ground, featuring a long line of tanks as well as intensive combat exercises with a lot of shooting in an urban environment and in field trenches.
“All training involves new military hardware and modern equipment,” the minister stressed, adding that soldiers are being instructed by veteran officers that have gained battle experience during the Ukraine conflict.
According to the statement, all of the soldiers have already undergone individual battle training, with operational coordination training now underway.
Shoigu said last month that Russia was recruiting a massive reserve force. At the time, the minister said that on average about 1,300 people – roughly equivalent to one regiment – join the military under a contract every day. In total, some 114,000 contract soldiers and 52,000 volunteers had enlisted in the army, he added.
His remarks came after Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow did not need to call up more soldiers for now, noting that the army was enjoying a steady inflow of volunteers.
Russia announced a partial mobilization last September calling to arms some 300,000 reservists, citing the need to protect the long frontline against Ukrainian troops.
KETIKA kemarin pagi saya masuk ke gedung Fakultas Ekonomi UI, mau ke ATM, saya terkejut dengan 4 poster menempel di atas gedung itu. Poster itu berisi kata kunci tentang pandangan filosofi UI atau fakultas itu, yang pertama Etika dan Tanggung Jawab Sosial (ethics and CSR), dan yang terakhir berpikir kritis (Critical Thinking).
Penempatan etika di depan membuat saya terbayang pada dua sosok, pertama adalah Rocky Gerung yang selalu memompakan akal sehat atau lebih dekatnya berpikir kritis ketimbang etika. Sedang sosok lainnya adalah Yusrizky dan beberapa pengurus alumni ITB yang diduga menjadi otak korupsi BTS Kominfo. Kebetulan Yusrizky dan beberapa lainnya pernah berinteraksi dengan saya dahulu.
Apa itu etika? Apa itu berpikir kritis?
Etika adalah kajian filosofis tentang karakteristik seseorang. Ini terkait moralitas. Para filosof, sejak jaman Plato dan Aristoteles, membahas soal ini dalam konteks kebahagiaan manusia. Manusia hidup adalah untuk mengejar kebahagiaan, happiness.
"Beeing good person" atau menjadi manusia bermoral adalah bagian pencapaian happiness itu. Demikian Aristoteles dalam Aristotle's Ethics yang dikutif dari Stanford Ensyclopedia.
Berpikir kritis sendiri terkait dengan logik. Rocky Gerung menjadi simbol pembicaraan tentang ini di Indonesia. Rasionalitas adalah menggunakan akal pikiran untuk melakukan sesuatu atau membuat keputusan.
Persoalannya apakah etik dan logik ini mampu dimiliki seseorang secara simultan? Mengapa semboyan di FE UI itu yang utama etik, bukan rasional?
Setiap orang tidak bisa mempunyai kemampuan simultan dalam keseimbangan logik dan etik. Aristoteles membagi orang tersebut dalam tiga kelompok, pertama people of continent, kedua people of incontinent dan terakhir evil people. Yang continent adalah manusia bijak. Terjadi keharmonisan pada dirinya. Yang kedua di bawah rata-rata dalam pengendalian diri. Yang terakhir adalah manusia rusak, yang nafsunya tidak dapat dikendalikan.
Menurutnya, karakter itu atau hal-hal terkait etika seperti keberanian (courageous), keadilan (justice), pengendalian diri atau kesederhanaan (temperance), dan sejenisnya, dapat diperoleh melalaui pembinaan karakter ketika masa perkembangan anak. Itu harus dipupuk kokoh.
Yusrizky dan beberapa pengurus pusat alumni ITB, dalam katagori Aristoteles adalah evil people. Mereka telah menjadi otak dalam perkara korupsi BTS, penjahat besar. Ini korupsi terparah di Indonesia sejak jaman kemerdekaan. Sebab, menurut Mahfud MD projek ini fiktif. Di rancang dan dikerjakan sepanjang tahun 2020-2022 dengan anggaran sangat besar, Rp10 triliun, dikorupsi hampir Rp8 triliun atau 80 persen.
Selain itu, media mainstream, juga melaporkan keterlibatan hampir seluruh komponen penting kekuatan rezim Jokowi, baik menteri, pimpinan parpol yang berkuasa dan pengusaha pro Jokowi.
Meskipun pengungkapan kasus ini terkesan dikendalikan dalam batasan kepentingan politik 2024, namun kejahatan bisnis ini mirip dengan korupsi bansos, yakni dilakukan atas nama kepentingan vital bangsa, yakni digitalisasi pendidikan di era pandemi Covid-19.
Evil people yang dilakukan dan diorganisasikan alumni-alumni ITB merupakan pengkhianatan kaum intelektual. Yusrizky dan alumi ITB itu bukan saja pengurus inti alumni, melainkan juga aktifis sentral ketika mereka menjadi mahasiswa di era 90 an. Apakah pengkhianatan ini merupakan kegagalan sistem sosial kita melakukan kontrol atas individual atau sub sistem di bawahnya?
Kita bisa saja menyalahkan situasi negeri ini yang sangat korup sejak Jokowi berkuasa, yakni indeks persepsi korupsi 34, jauh di bawah rata-rata internasional 44, menurut Transparasi Internasional.
Pandangan ini dapat didekati dengan perspektif struktural. Namun, sepanjang kepedulian kita rendah pada isu etik, yakni moral dan kultur manusia kita, maka kita akan pasrah pada situasi yang ada. Di sinilah peranan perguruan tinggi dan intelektual mendorongnya agar isu moral atau etika menjadi isu utama yang harus diselesaikan.
Tentu kita yang mayoritas beragama Islam dan agama Samawi lainnya, sepakat dengan Aristoteles pentingnya etika. Kita perlu melakukan refleksi mengapa agama di Indonesia gagal memberikan etika pada manusia kita?
Kampus dan kaum ulama perlu melakukan kajian-kajian serius soal ini. Apakah kegagalan itu bisa dibenahi? Bagaimana menjadikan kaum intelektual sebagai sandaran etik selamanya?
Penutup
Kasus korupsi BTS Kementerian Informatika telah menunjukkan hancurnya kaum intelektual, khususnya alumni ITB. Beberapa nama yang jadi otak korupsi ini, Yusrizky, Anang Latif dan lainnya merupakan pengurus inti alumni ITB. Bahkan, mereka aktivis utama kemahasiswaan ITB ketika mahasiswanya tahun 90an. Ini adalah sebuah pengkhianatan kaum intelektual.
Sumber masalahnya terletak pada hilangnya etika atau pembangunan karakter di Indonesia. Tentu saja tidak mengurangi domain kegagalan sistem atau struktur sosial yang memang korup. Pada bahasan ini kita harus berani mengambil sisi etik atau moral atau karakter sebagai tantangan besar yang harus kita selesaikan.
Sebab, kita sudah bingung mau menyelesaikan dari mana soal korupsi ini, jika tidak mulai dari pembenahan karakter manusia kita.
Semoga kaum intelektual berbenah diri, menjadikan landasan moral dan karakter yang kokoh sebagai bagian penting dari kiprah kehidupannya. Semoga bangsa ini bisa selamat dan bebas korupsi nantinya. Entah kapanpun.
Thousands of foreign fighters joined the ranks of Ukrainian forces in 2022, some looking for a payday, others manipulated by their countries' media into believing they would be fighting for freedom against cartoonish Russian villains. The Russian MoD has warned foreigners that the rules of international humanitarian law doesn't apply to mercs.
An investigation by French media has uncovered the salaries of foreign mercenaries attached to Ukraine’s infamous International Legion, with fighters said to receive 500 euros (about $550 US) per month as a base salary, and up to 3,000 euros (about $3,300) per month when they’re on the front lines.
The report estimates that there are presently about 100 French nationals fighting in Ukraine, with their ranks slimming down considerably over the past year from as many as 800 as so-called “TikTok fighters” – who planned to go fight in Ukraine but never left France, and those who did go but quickly came back, dropped out.
International Legion fighters reportedly sign contracts with the Ukrainian army, with some complaining about having to pay out of pocket for expenses, including weapons. One anonymous fighter said an assault rifle can cost 4,000 euros ($4,400).
That’s well above the US price tag of between $600 and $1,200 for an M4S assault rifle, and may hint at the presence of wheeler-dealer arms sellers dealing in weapons donated to Ukraine by NATO countries. Some fighters reportedly set up online fundraising campaigns to pay for weapons and vehicles.
French mercs have various motivations for going to Ukraine, with at least one third of the 100 volunteers said to have far-right or neo-Nazi views.
“According to the intelligence services, more than a third of the fighters are close to the ultra-right. Some are clearly neo-Nazis and assert these ideas. Others are on file with the French security services or have fled convictions in France,” the media report said.
Some of the fighters have reportedly avoided the International Legion, integrating instead into formations affiliated with far-right volunteer units such as the so-called Misanthropic Division,* a notorious international neo-Nazi paramilitary organization based in Ukraine with a record of extremism, terrorism and war crimes in the Donbass.
Some French nationals who have fought in Ukraine have proven a headache for French authorities after coming back from the warzone. In April, two French ultra-right fighters were arrested and sentenced to six months in prison for trying to smuggle military equipment, including assault rifle magazines and rifle sights, back into France.
Last October, 14 members of France’s elite Foreign Legion were arrested while traveling to Poland to try to join the fight in Ukraine, violating a travel ban prohibiting them from leaving the country.
In March 2022, an ultra-right fugitive on the run from French police over the suspected murder of Argentine rugby star Federico Aramburu was arrested on the Hungarian-Ukrainian border while trying to make his way into Ukraine.
‘Worthless Persons’
Apart from ideological motivations, some foreigners appear to be driven by idealistic visions of being able to “help” Ukrainians after being abandoned by society in their own countries.
“I am a worthless person in Japan, but I am hoping to bring back something from Ukraine,” Yuya Motomura, a mahjong parlor manager who joined the ranks of a small group of Japanese volunteers in Ukraine, told Japanese media. Motomura, whose acceptance into the Foreign Legion was eased by a colleague with ties to the Yakuza – Japan’s mafia, said he probably wouldn’t have gone if he was better off financially at home.
“I am here in this country, hoping to make use of myself. In that sense, I already feel fulfilled,” the volunteer, who has made his way to Ukraine but has yet to participate in combat, said.
Mercs who have already faced Russian forces in battle have decidedly less rosy appraisals about their purpose and role. Last week, American volunteers with combat experience in US wars told US media that “the worst day in Afghanistan and Iraq is a great day in Ukraine,” where they enjoy no emergency evac support, no air support, no artillery support, poor communications, and limited intelligence. One of the mercs has since retired from the front and now lives in Kiev, where he works to locate and transfer the remains of American fighters killed in Ukraine.
Thousands for foreign mercenaries traveled to Ukraine over the past year to fight Russia, with many since killed, captured or fleeing the country, some after witnessing the carnage of battle, others after getting disillusioned in their cause over war crimes committed by Ukrainian volunteer units, or getting tired of being used as cannon fodder by commanders.
The Russian military has warned repeatedly that foreign mercenaries fighting for Ukraine would not be considered combatants in accordance with international humanitarian law and the rules of warfare, or enjoy the status of prisoners of war.
In early June, Ukraine launched its long-promised counteroffensive after several postponements. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainian troops are continuing to try, but failing to advance in three sectors: South Donetsk, Artemovsk (Bakhmut), and Zaporozhye, with the latter being the primary focus.
Units of the Russian Armed Forces thwarted an attack by Ukrainian militants by destroying a mortar that was covering Ukrainian assault units in the Zaporozhye direction, a commander of a unit of the Russian Armed Forces said.
"While trying to storm our positions by means of aerial reconnaissance, the position of the enemy mortar covering his units was revealed. After transmitting the coordinates of the target, our artillery accurately hit the target. The mortar fell silent. The offensive was neutralized," the commander of the Russian forces said.
The Ukrainian offensive in the southern Donetsk, Zaporozhye, and Artemovsk directions began on June 4, with Ukrainian forces concentrating their main attack in the Zaporozhye sector. Kiev deployed NATO-trained brigades armed with Western equipment, including Leopard tanks.
Watch Russian Defense Chief Sergey Shoigu Inspects Combat Training of Military Personnel
Earlier this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said that the ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensive had not reached its goals in any of the directions of the military campaign.
The Russian Defense Ministry has released video footage of Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu inspecting the organization of combat training of contract servicemen of newly formed formations and military units at training ranges of the Southern Military District.
Shoigu also checked the preparation and training of T-90 Proryv tank crews, as well as how contract soldiers are trained in conducting combat operations in various conditions and terrain, including urban combat.
Ukrainian Forces Loses Over 700 Soldiers in 4 Directions in Past 24 Hours - MoD
Kiev has continued its unsuccessful attempts to advance in the South Donetsk, Donetsk, Zaporozhye, South Donetsk and Krasny Liman directions, as a result of which Ukrainian troops lost over 700 military in the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday.
The Russian armed forces repelled nine attacks by Ukrainian troops in the Donetsk direction near the towns of Druzhba, Severnoe, Marinka, Pervomaiskoe, the ministry said.
"The total losses of the Ukrainian troops (in the Donetsk direction) amounted to up to 500 people in killed and wounded, three tanks, six infantry fighting vehicles, four armored fighting vehicles, two vehicles, and two US self-propelled howitzers M109 Paladin, as well as a D-30 howitzer," the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Moreover, Russian troops defeated over 170 Ukrainian military and destroyed one CAESAR self-propelled howitzer, one US-made M777 howitzer, two Msta-B howitzers, two D-20 gun-howitzers, and one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer in the South Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia directions over the past 24 hours, the ministry added.
In the Krasnyi Lyman direction, Russian troops defeated over 60 Ukrainian soldiers and destroyed three armored vehicles and two D-30 howitzers using air strikes and artillery fire, the ministry also said.
Di atas, pasukan keamanan Iran dikerahkan menyusul serangan bersenjata di kuil Shah Cheragh di Shiraz pada 26 Oktober 2022. (ISNA/AFP)
Iran mengeksekusi dua pria pada hari Sabtu, 08/07/2023, yang dihukum gantung di depan umum karena terlibat dalam serangan terhadap sebuah kuil Syiah yang menewaskan sedikitnya 13 orang pada bulan Oktober, kata pengadilan.
Kedua pria tersebut digantung saat fajar di selatan kota Shiraz, menurut kantor berita Irna.
“Hukuman mati dua pelaku serangan teroris Shah Cheragh dilakukan di depan umum pagi ini,” kata situs web pengadilan Mizan Online.
Mereka diidentifikasi sebagai Mohammad Ramez Rashidi dan Naeem Hashem Qatali, kata Mizan, tanpa menjelaskan lebih lanjut.
Pada bulan Maret, pengadilan Iran telah menjatuhkan hukuman mati kepada kedua pria tersebut setelah mereka dinyatakan bersalah atas “korupsi di bumi, pemberontakan bersenjata, dan tindakan yang bertentangan dengan keamanan nasional.”
Mereka juga didakwa dengan keanggotaan Daesh (ISIS) dan “konspirasi melawan keamanan negara.”
Pada saat itu, hakim agung Fars Kazem Moussavi mengatakan mereka terlibat langsung dalam “mempersenjatai, pengadaan, logistik, dan bimbingan” pelaku utama.
Tiga terdakwa lain dalam kasus tersebut dijatuhi hukuman penjara selama lima, 15 dan 25 tahun karena menjadi anggota Daesh, katanya.
Salah satu penyerang, yang diidentifikasi oleh media di Iran sebagai Hamed Badakhshan, meninggal karena luka yang diderita selama penangkapannya, kata pihak berwenang.
Pada November, Pengadilan Iran mengatakan 26 "teroris takfiri" dari Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, dan Tajikistan telah ditangkap sehubungan dengan serangan itu.
Di Iran yang didominasi Syiah, istilah takfiri umumnya mengacu pada militan atau pendukung Islam Sunni radikal.
Serangan kuil itu terjadi lebih dari sebulan setelah protes meletus di seluruh Iran atas kematian seorang wanita muda Kurdi Iran dalam tahanan.
Mahsa Amini, 22, meninggal setelah penangkapannya oleh polisi moralitas di Teheran karena diduga melanggar aturan berpakaian wanita.
ISIS mengklaim serangan pertamanya di Iran pada tahun 2017 ketika orang-orang bersenjata dan pelaku bom bunuh diri menyerang kursi parlemen di Teheran dan makam Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, pendiri republik Islam, menewaskan 17 orang dan melukai puluhan lainnya.
Eksekusi publik relatif jarang terjadi di Iran dengan hampir semua hukuman gantung dilakukan di dalam penjara.
Iran mengeksekusi lebih banyak orang setiap tahun daripada negara mana pun selain China, menurut kelompok hak asasi manusia termasuk Amnesti Internasional yang berbasis di London.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will participate in the Russia-Africa forum and summit to be held in St. Petersburg later this month, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.
"Yes, certainly," he said, when asked a relevant question, adding that active preparations for the forum are currently underway.
"We expect a highly representative summit with quite a busy agenda and numerous events on the sidelines of it," Peskov said.
The second Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum is slated for July 27-28 in St. Petersburg. The first such event was held in Sochi on October 22-24, 2019 under the slogan "For peace, security and development."
Russian MFA hits out at UN claims Russian army violates rights of children in Ukraine
Russia strongly condemns UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ decision to add the Russian Armed Forces to the list of parties responsible for violations against children in Ukraine, which was attached to the report, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Friday.
The diplomat drew attention to the open debate on the protection of children in armed conflicts held by the United Nations Security Council on July 5, which was dedicated to the UN Secretary General’s annual report for 2022.
"We categorically denounce Guterres’ prejudiced political decision to add the Russian Armed Forces to the list of parties responsible for violations against children in Ukraine, which was attached to the report. The UN Secretariat disregarded the established practice of thoroughly verifying information, which is particularly important amid the avalanche of misinformation obtained from a wide range of pro-Western biased sources. Furthermore, it is puzzling that the Ukrainian armed forces are not on the list of violators, even though the UN officials attribute a significant number of killings and maimings of children, as well as attacks on schools and hospitals, to them," Zakharova said.
Pentagon admits disappointment with Ukrainian counteroffensive
Washington’s decision to supply Ukraine with controversial cluster munitions was partly influenced by disappointment with lackluster results of Kiev’s much-vaunted summer counteroffensive,The US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl told reporters on Friday.
Speaking immediately after the White House announced that President Joe Biden had signed off on the delivery of dual-purpose improved conventional munitions (DPICM) to Ukraine, Kahl said that the decision was influenced by “the urgency of the moment.”
“We want to make sure that the Ukrainians have sufficient artillery to keep them in the fight in the context of the current counteroffensive, and because things are going a little slower than some had hoped,” he said.
Kahl admitted that “the Russians have been more successful digging in deeply, perhaps more than is appreciated.”
Kahl, the highest ranking civilian official in the Pentagon, also acknowledged that the cluster munitions would serve as a “bridge” until the US and its allies can increase production of conventional 155mm artillery shells for Ukraine.
After months of postponements, Ukraine’s counteroffensive began on June 4 with a failed attack on Russian positions near Donetsk, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Outmatched by Russian artillery and lacking air support, Ukraine’s NATO-trained brigades advanced through Russian-laid minefields, suffering steep casualties. The Russian Defense Ministry estimated late last month that Ukraine lost around 13,000 troops and nearly 250 tanks between June 4 and June 21.
Despite these high losses, Kahl claimed on Friday that Kiev’s forces were still “probing for weak spots” in Russia’s multi-layered defensive network, and that the majority of Ukraine’s combat power “has not been brought to bear.”
American officials have been disappointed with the lack of progress, according to multiple US media reports over the last three weeks. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials have alternated between claiming that the true counteroffensive has yet to begin, and blaming the West for not providing enough weapons to guarantee success.
Cluster munitions are banned in more than 120 countries because when they detonate, they release many small ‘bomblets’ over a wide area, with these unexploded elements posing severe risks to civilians for years after fighting ends. The US is not a party to the ban, but maintains a prohibition on the export of munitions with a ‘dud’ rate of more than 1%.
Biden waived this ban to supply DPICM ammunition to Ukraine based on “unanimous” advice from his national security team, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Friday. According to Kahl, the DPICM rounds sent to Kiev will have a failure rate of up to 2.35%.
