Russian soldier says he will 'pray for a wound' in Ukraine so he can leave the front lines, intercepted audio shows

Russian servicemen take part in military exercises at the Uspenovskyi training ground outside the city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia, on September 4, 2022.

Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images

• The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine shared audio it said was intercepted from a Russian soldier.
• The clip shows a man complaining about Putin and his partial mobilization plans.
• He also says he will "pray for a wound" in Ukraine so he can go home.

Ukraine shared what it said was intercepted audio that showed a Russian soldier saying that he will "pray for a wound" so he can leave the front lines as soon as possible.

A four-minute clip of the intercepted phone call was shared by The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine on Tuesday. It said the conversation was between a Russian soldier based in the occupied city of Kherson and an unidentified woman.

It appears to offer new insight into the continued low morale in Russia's military even after President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization last week, which will bring more troops into Ukraine.

In the call, the man tells the woman woman that his morale is "complete shit" and that he needs "to get wounded" so that he can go home, according to a translation from The Daily Beast.

It is unclear what the relationship between the man and the woman is. The audio has not been independently verified.

"If I get lucky I'll get pneumonia and leave," the man said in the audio, adding that he will "pray for a wound" because the soldiers who get wounded "leave here with tears [of joy] in their eyes," according to The Daily Beast.

The man also curses out "fuck face" Putin for his mobilization plans, adding that because the government is sending "half of Russia" to the front lines, they won't be able to pay everyone, according to the translation.

"Fuck, if they don't give me benefits and medals after all this bullshit, I'll go against the country [and join] the fucking opposition," the man added, according to The Daily Beast.

Putin's mobilization decree has prompted protests across Russia and even instances of violence, as thousands of Russians are desperately trying to exit their country.

A former US general said Tuesday that Putin's draft is a "recipe for slaughter" and that the conscripted Russians "will not be prepared for what they will encounter."

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