Russian military bloggers are currently voicing fierce criticism of their own military command, as follows FOCUS online. A brigade of Russian soldiers isolated on an island in the Dnipro River is being massively shelled by Ukrainian artillery. The result is enormous losses; FOCUS online reports that in just two days between 200 and 300 soldiers have either fallen or been captured.
According to FOCUS online, the affected unit’s calls for help, especially for Russian artillery support, have so far gone unheard. In addition, one of the brigade commanders had asked for approval to withdraw. However, the military command had refused this request. Interestingly, the military command had dismissed two commanders who had advocated withdrawal.
Russia Deserting Its Forces
The criticism of the military bloggers, FOCUS online continues, is not limited to this particular incident. They point to repeated failures on the front lines near Kherson. They say that the troops on the ground were supplied with insufficient supplies and were basically abandoned. A key criticism, they say, is the failure of senior commanders to take responsibility. One exemplary omission cited by FOCUS online concerns a missed opportunity: there had been an opportunity to attack a smaller Ukrainian unit on the Dnipro shore, but necessary boats for this attack had not been provided.
Image: Kremlin.ru, Vladimir Putin (24.06.2023), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image size modified)