Russia-Ukraine War: Purge in the Russian Army? Doubts are growing about the whereabouts of the two generals

Where are they? Two high -ranking Russian military officials did not show up at the May 9 military parade in Moscow, nor are they on the list of officers killed in the war or missing. Everyone thinks they fell for “purge” released by President Vladimir Putin since he began his hitherto unintentional invasion of Ukraine. A war he personally led.

British intelligence released its daily report, through the Ministry of Defense. believe that Russia has top commanders fired for “poor performance” during the invasion of Ukraine, in the midst of the emerging culture of “cover -ups and scapegoats.”

Lt. Gen. Serhiy Kisel, who commanded the elite 1st Guards Tank Army, was suspended for non -arrest in Kharkov, Ukraine’s second largest city, the British Defense Ministry said.

Authorities also believe Vice Admiral Igor Osipov, who commanded Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, was suspended after the sinking of Moskva, the flagship, in April.

General Valery Gerasimov, chief of general staff, is likely to remain in office, intelligence said. Although it is not clear whether “he still retains the trust of President Putin.”

Earlier in the week, a Western military source said Gerasimov and Putin were believed to be captured low level of tactical decisions, the type usually decided by a colonel or a brigadier.

The source said Gerasimov was “up and running” after rumors that he was wounded in Ukraine when Ukrainians raided a command post and then suspended. Nor did he appear at the military parade to celebrate the victory of the Russians against the Nazis in Berlin.

The review of Great Britain

The British Ministry of Defense said that “in recent weeks, Russia has fired high -ranking commanders deemed underperforming in the early stages of its invasion of Ukraine. A culture of cover -up and scapegoating is likely to be rampant within the Russian military and security establishment. “

“Such a culture could have an impact on Russia’s fighting ability,” he added.

The Defense Ministry said many officials involved in the invasion of Ukraine were “likely to be further interrupted by efforts to avoid personal blame for Russia’s operational setbacks.”

“This is likely to put further pressure on Russia’s centralized command and control model, as officials increasingly seek to postpone major decisions to their superiors. It will be difficult for Russia to regain the initiative under the conditions. this, “British officials explained.

What the United States says

Meanwhile, U.S. defense officials said Russia seems to be lowering its ambitions, with smaller and more local offensives. One official said they were seeing a “reduction in their offenses and their targets” and they were using smaller units.

Russia’s progress in general is “relatively limited,” with troops advancing perhaps several miles daily, a U.S. official said.

Russia’s strikes in the eastern Donbas region have been described as “futile” by the Center for Defense Strategies (CDS), a Ukrainian think tank, because of their lack of manpower.

The group of experts noted that Russia currently has 105 tactical groups of the battalion in Ukraine, each of them has a different size. But they usually consist of up to 900 soldiers each. Twenty of them came in the last three weeks.

For a successful offensive in the Donbas, which covers the region between the cities of Izyum and Vuhledar, further south, they must have at least 68 tactical groups, he said. The CDS did not say how many it has in the region, but Ukraine says there are 48 tactical groups there. “These numbers explain the futility of Russia’s actions in the region,” he said.

General Sir Richard Barrons, a retired British military commander, said the stable defense positions in Ukraine were “really hard to overcome”. Experts discussed the need for a strength ratio in a frontal assault of at least five to one, if not seven to one.

The Russians were also digging their positions in the East and building fortifications as they added stocks and they are trying to improve their tactical positions.

Patience

Members of the Ukrainian underground resistance to President Putin’s aggression have killed two high -ranking Russian officials in the occupied city of Melitopol, according to Ukrainian sources.

The bodies of two Russians were found next to the boiler of a building in the city center on Monday, according to the Ukrainian body that coordinates the fight in the occupied areas.

“In Melitopol, the guerrillas removed a high -ranking Russian military,” the Ukrainian regional command said. “Residents are trying to cover up the situation. But the Russian army has started intensifying inspections of private vehicles in the city now, probably looking for guerrillas,” he explained.

The latest deaths brought the total number of killings in Melitopol to 100, the Ukrainian Center for National Resistance said. He said he was “trained and experienced” by soldiers that he could use in guerrilla warfare.

Russian forces responded by raising checkpoints on city roads.

Melitopol, a city in southern Ukraine about 90 kilometers north of Crimea, has been occupied by Russian troops since the first days of the invasion in late February.

Moscow tried to claim that Ukrainian civilians were grateful for their liberation from the “Nazi Rule” in kyiv, which often showed pictures on state television of soldiers handing out packages of food and medicine .

However, that narrative is undermined by stories of disobedience emerging from occupied territories in southern Ukraine, which appear to on the brink of economic collapse.

In recent weeks, graffiti of Ukrainian flags has appeared on buildings around Kherson, in protest against Russia’s occupation.

In March, Ukrainian protesters risked their lives by taking to the streets of Melitopol and successfully securing the release of the city’s mayor, a few days after he was kidnapped by Russian troops.

Businesses in the city, known as the “gateway to the Crimea,” were closed. Inflation is rising, according to the Zaporizhzhya Regional Military Administration, responsible for the area. Russian troops imposed an additional 30 percent tax on local business revenues.

Paris, correspondent

CB