Greetings to the front

Women’s Day: Putin praises female soldiers in Ukraine

In a video message to mark International Women's Day, Russian President Vladimir Putin paid tribute to the female soldiers fighting in Ukraine. He paid special tribute to "the women who are in the zone of special military operations and are carrying out combat missions".

In Russia, "special military operation" is the official term for the offensive in Ukraine that began a good two years ago.

Defense Minister: Soldiers' mothers "patriots"
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu once again thanked the mothers of the soldiers fighting in Ukraine. "You have raised true patriots and brave defenders of the motherland." According to Shoigu, more than 300,000 women "serve and work" in the Russian army. Last year, he put the number of female soldiers deployed in Ukraine at around 1,100, most of whom have supporting roles such as doctors or cooks.

Putin also issued a decree releasing 52 female prisoners, including some whose relatives were in the military. 

In recent weeks, there have been isolated protests in Russia by the wives of soldiers fighting in Ukraine. Among other things, they demanded the return of their husbands from the front directly in front of the Kremlin.