Putin uses retired aging soldiers to replenish his forces in echo of desperate Hitler after nearly 20,000 have been wiped out

DESPERATE Vladimir Putin plans to recruit aging retired soldiers to bolster his armed forces after nearly 20,000 soldiers were killed in Ukraine.

British intelligence claims the tactic is being used to generate more fighting power in response to mounting casualties in the face of heroic Ukrainian defenders.

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The move was outlined by the UK MoD in its latest intelligence update on Sunday.

It states: “In response to mounting casualties, the Russian armed forces are attempting to bolster troop levels with personnel discharged from military service since 2012.

“Efforts to increase combat effectiveness include trying to recruit from the unrecognized region of Transnistria in Moldova.”

The new recruits could be older than 60, with federal law limiting the age of Russian military Staff, 19Forty-five reported.

Under the regulations, lieutenants of military rank and enlisted men must be under 50, colonels and captains of the 1st rank under 55, and vice admirals and major generals under 60.

Recruiting soldiers who retired in 2012 because of their age could mean they are several years past their 60s.

The approach mirrors similar tactics taken by Adolf Hitler‘s NSDAP who were ordered to set up the so-called “Volkssturm” of civilian forces in the final months of World War II.

It consisted of German men between the ages of 16 and 60 who were not already doing military service.

A number of district units were set up across Germany, staffed by members of the Hitler Youth, the elderly, or men previously considered unfit for military service.

“Big battles” are expected to take place in the Donbass, where Russian troops have been repositioned after failing to capture Kyiv.

Mykhaylo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, said: “Ukraine must win, and once that happens Ukraine will have a stronger negotiating position.”

It comes like Corpses of dead Russian troops left behind by their comrades have been found in eastern Ukraine in the latest sign that Russia’s chaotic invasion is in disarray.

Video from the site of a wrecked armored personnel carrier shows frying pans, drills and even children’s toys that appear to have been looted from it Putin‘s soldiers.

The troops were allegedly ambushed in Sumy in the north-east Ukrainenear the Russian Border.

The Kremlin’s chief spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, acknowledged that the Russian army had suffered “significant casualties,” which he described as “a tragedy for us.”

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