Volunteers announce basic needs for frontline troops

Representatives of three Lviv volunteer organizations – Lvivsky Lytsar, Dopomoha Frontu and Park – declared that the truce had not been observed, so the boys stationed in eastern Ukraine require more assistance and support. However, the needs and “requests" of the soldiers have changed. Food products, bulletproof vests or helmets are no longer needed; commanders and officers are now asking for thermal imagers, night vision devices, binoculars, etc. Volunteers say that servicemen on the front lines are requesting equipment that is not provided for by the charter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Oleksandr Molody, member of the Park volunteer group said that “the Ministry of Defence doesn’t deliver equipment that is not listed in the charter. And really, that charter doesn’t provide for tactical goggles or tactical gloves or thermal imagers or night vision devices or laser rangefinders.” The 18^th Brigade has already asked for white camouflage suits for the winter. Uliana Didych pointed out that the soldiers also need warm and long military socks and winter boots as nothing of the kind has been provided. “Moreover, there’s a huge problem with radios. Soldiers are assigned tanks or self-propelled artillery where only one radio can be used to communicate with the battalion; the SP artillery units are given poor quality volunteer radios. For information, just one stationary radio device is worth up to 20,000 hryvnias.” With the onset of cold weather, the servicemen have started coming down with various illnesses. So, the men require medication to fight off colds and the flu, like Fervex and Theraflu. They also need tourniquets and hemostatic agents to stop bleeding. However, volunteers ask people not to buy drugs and medicine on their own, but to ask for professional advice. The volunteers are ready to provide information on places where medicine can be purchased cheaply, and will advise people on what servicemen really need.