The Institute for the Study of War's latest assessment on Moscow's invasion of Ukraine reported Russian volunteers are not being provided sufficient food, pay, or benefits.
Released on Saturday, the ISW also alleges reserve volunteers are being placed into positions of authority without experience and are not having proper funeral arrangements organized as promised.
"Several volunteers who have already returned home from Ukraine stated that they felt 'deceived' and treated worse than regular contract soldiers," the institute wrote.
"Russian officials have sent contract soldiers who refuse to fight ... to special detention camps in Popasna and Bryanki, Luhansk Oblast, among other locations," it added.
According to the Washington, D.C.-based think tank, the likely reason for the supply chain and compensation issues comes from Russian officials struggling to "replace large personnel losses, prevent desertion, and to fund and logistically support" avenues required for them.
The ISW's report comes as Russia trudges on in its conquest of southern and eastern Ukraine, gaining significant territory but also experiencing catastrophic losses in its ground forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has experienced widespread condemnation for his force's encampment along the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, an area that Moscow is reportedly using to store explosives and ammunition, according to the BBC.
Ukraine and Russia have both been engaged in shelling back and forth from in and around the location, causing western leaders to issue a statement Sunday requesting Putin's immediate withdrawal.
The United States, United Kingdom, European Union, and NATO argued the presence "poses a great danger" to nuclear safety and security, CNBC reported.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.