17 days without food: scandal erupts in the 14th OMBR

In recent days, a loud scandal erupted online regarding the condition of the soldiers of the 14th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after Prince Roman the Great, who are carrying out combat missions on the Kup’iansk direction. Photos of sharply emaciated servicemen, who, according to their relatives and the authors of social media posts, had long been without stable supplies of food and water, caused an outcry and forced the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the General Staff of the Armed Forces to respond.

Users of social networks were the first to draw attention to the situation. Posts referred to soldiers of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion of the 14th SMB, who are temporarily serving as part of another unit. The authors of the messages claimed that the servicemen allegedly found themselves on positions without proper supplies, had communication problems, were losing consciousness from hunger, and were forced to drink rainwater.

The author of one such post on Threads under the nickname i.petrovna_ appealed to users asking them to widely share information about the soldiers’ condition.

“Friends, maximum publicity! 14th brigade, 2nd mechanized battalion, attached to the 30th brigade’s 2nd battalion. The guys are on positions without food and water! The command does not respond. Soldiers are losing consciousness from hunger, drinking rainwater. There are also communication problems. Please share these photos”

A similar appeal was also published by activist Anton Hura. He stated that he received information about a critical situation with supplying the servicemen of the 14th brigade, and one message even mentioned that due to hunger the fighters allegedly had to eat rain worms. At the same time, the soldiers’ relatives have not publicly confirmed this detail.

The wife of one of the soldiers of the 14th SMB, Anastasiia S., told journalists at TSN.ua that her husband has been serving since February 26, 2022 and has already been on positions for nine months. According to her, other servicemen can remain there for 9, 10 and even 12 months. The woman claims that serious food supply difficulties began back in December 2025.

“When the guys went to the positions, they weighed over 80-90 kg, and now their weight is about 50. They are not the only ones like this; other women (relatives of these servicemen – ed.) are contacting us. It turns out that the problem is much larger. My husband told me that, for example, they were airdropped food, after which there was no food for 15 days. Then they drop supplies again, after which there is no food for 10 days. The longest was 17 days without food. They were not heard on the radios or were not wanted to be heard. He says they screamed, begged that there was no food, no water,” — said Anastasiia S.

According to the woman, other positions received supplies, but their unit remained in a critical state. She also reported that the fighters drank rainwater and ate snow. However, she did not confirm the information about rain worms.

“I believe this situation required publicity. There must be rotations, the guys need medical treatment. We are grateful to everyone for the publicity. Women whose husbands have been without communication for 10 months are reaching out,” — noted Anastasiia S.

Separately, photos of soldiers before and after drastic weight loss were circulated on social networks. User Facebook Alla Poberezhnik published images of fighters from the 14th brigade, emphasizing that these shots are a cry for help and cannot leave society indifferent.

After the publicity, the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine stated that the situation is known to the relevant command, and the commander of the 14th SMB has taken it under personal control. The ministry acknowledged that logistics on certain sections of the front are extremely difficult, but emphasized that such situations should not reach a critical point. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reported that the brigade and corps command are in contact with the families of servicemen and are trying to resolve supply and replacement issues.

After that, the General Staff of the Armed Forces announced personnel decisions. In particular, the previous commander of the 14th SMB was removed from his post, and the commander of the 10th Army Corps was dismissed and reassigned with demotion. The new commander of the 14th SMB became Colonel Taras Maksimov, and the 10th Army Corps was headed by Brigadier General Artem Bohomolov. Ukrainian media also reported these decisions citing the General Staff.

The newly appointed commander of the 14th SMB spoke with the soldiers who held positions beyond the Oskil River on the Kupʼiansk direction without proper supply. After the publicity, food was urgently delivered to the fighters and they now say they are provided with everything necessary. Maksimov also promised to conduct a rotation from the position in the near future, if current weather conditions persist.

The General Staff explained that supplying Defense Forces units in the Kup’iansk area was significantly complicated by systematic Russian aviation and missile strikes on crossings over the Oskil River. Logistics there is now carried out using watercraft and heavy drones, and the command is working to strengthen air defence (AD), countermeasures against enemy drones and electronic warfare (EW) capabilities.

At the same time, reaction reports from the command noted that inspections revealed problems with food provision at one of the brigade’s positions, and the new command is already working to stabilize the situation. According to Ukrainian media, cargoes with food were delivered to the position, and evacuation of servicemen is planned under favorable conditions.

The command of the Joint Forces Group called the situation with the supply of positions of the servicemen of the 14th SMB a terrible “managerial” disgrace and launched an inspection of the entire chain of command of the 10th Corps. They emphasized that commanders at all levels must prevent food supply interruptions and report critical problems directly.

This story is painful not only because of the photos of exhausted defenders, but also because of the fact itself: during the war with Russian aggression, the people who hold the front should not become hostages of indifference, failed logistics, or commanders’ unwillingness to acknowledge the real state of affairs. The difficult situation at the front does not relieve those responsible from supplying soldiers with food, water, communications, rotation, and medical assistance.

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