Ukraine’s edge in war: Esprit de (military) corps

News about the wars in Iran and Gaza has lately eclipsed that of a more consequential war: the one in Ukraine, now in its fifth year. Yet that conflict could soon take a turn against the aggressor, Russia – less on the battlefront and more on the homefront.By various reports, young Russians are showing more bravery through subtle opposition to the war, while young men have become less brave about joining the military – actively avoiding coercive new ways of recruiting them to replace the vast number of soldiers lost on the front lines.The contrast with Ukraine could not be more stark. While Ukrainians sometimes complain about conscription, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the rank and file this week: “You are the best army in Europe. Period.”“And that is the plain truth,” he added, “because our military stands not only on doctrines and standards, but also has a heart that needs no additional order to be brave.“We fight as a country, we laugh and cry as a country, and we love as a country. And this makes us a hundred times stronger than Russia.”In recent days, reports that the Kremlin is preparing a new mass mobilization – estimated to amount to 300,000 troops – has led to frantic calls by young men for help in emigrating out of Russia. The previous mobilization, in September 2022, was very unpopular and led to hundreds of thousands of men leaving the country. A new law attempts to punish such political émigrés by blocking their access to banks and to the renewal of passports.By most expert accounts, Russia is losing more soldiers to war than it is able to replace. President Vladimir Putin “knows that unless Russia can somehow maintain its manpower advantage on the battlefield, the invasion of Ukraine will devolve into a bloody quagmire,” wrote Mykola Bielieskov of the National Institute for Strategic Studies.Mr. Zelenskyy said Ukrainians have a “force holding us firmly by the hand,” namely, “support for one another, freedom from doubt about the person beside us, faith in all Ukrainians.”“In all his plans for Ukraine, Putin got the most important thing wrong,” he added. “The enemy counted our resources, our stockpiles, our equipment, but failed to take into account what was key: people.”Now, somewhat late, Mr. Putin wants more of his people to fight in a war of conquest that fewer see as justified. The war might well be one of the most technologically advanced in history. Yet the edge for Ukraine lies in morale, reflected in better ease of recruiting young men who have the heart to defend a country they love.