Mutinous Russian soldiers are 'stripped, tied up and taken away in trucks by feared general who's been sent in to restore discipline in Ukraine'
Ukrainian security forces released two recordings of intercepted phone calls
One hears a Russian soldier speaking to a friend, calling Putin an 'old nutjob'
He mocks prospect of a Russian victory in Ukraine, alluding to military failures
The second recording hears a different Russian soldier in a phone call
He tells a friend that the Kremlin has sent in a general to clamp down on dissent
It is understood he is talking about lieutenant general Rustam Muradov
By Chris Jewers For Mailonline
Published: 10:47 BST, 13 May 2022 | Updated: 12:19 BST, 13 May 2022
Mutinous Russian soldiers were stripped, tied up and taken away in trucks under the orders of a feared Russian general who has been sent in to restore discipline in Ukraine, according to a recording released by Kyiv's intelligence services.
Meanwhile, another audio clip was released in which a Russian soldier was overheard calling Vladimir Putin an 'old nutjob' and criticising his war in Ukraine.
The intercepted audio recordings are the latest evidence that morale is deteriorating among Moscow's forces as its faltering invasion of Ukraine entered its 12th week.
Both recordings were shared by Ukrainian Defence Ministry's Main Intelligence Directorate on social media on Thursday, according to the Daily Beast.
In the first intercepted phone call, a Russian soldier is heard telling a friend that the Kremlin has sent in a general, named only in the discussion as 'Muradov'.
While the general's full name is not revealed in the discussion, it is likely the soldier is referring to lieutenant general Rustam Muradov - the deputy commander of Russia's Southern Military District, known for overseeing brutal fighting in the Syrian civil war.
'Well, Muradov arrived and arranged a demonstrative tribunal,' the soldier said, adding that he disciplined his unit because 'no one wanted to keep going ahead'.
'The commanders didn't want to lead their boys to death, the soldier said. 'The guys themselves just weren't ready.
'So yesterday [Muradov] busted the f**k out of the commanders to make an example, he undressed them, made them pull everything out of their pockets, tied their hands. Then they loaded them into [buses] and took them away,' he added.
It was not reported by the Ukrainian authorities where the Russian soldier was when he made the phone call with his friend, but it's yet another example of Putin's troops showing signs of low morale amid reports of dwindling equipment and supplies.
Muradov is one of a number of Russian military figures sanctioned by the EU. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation in 2017, with the award being presented to him personally by Putin himself.