“Russia has fallen into disarray.” Who and how criticizes the Ministry of Defense because of the situation at the front
In recent weeks, patriotic telegram channels, public figures who support the military operation in Ukraine, as well as officials and deputies, have increasingly criticized the Russian Defense Ministry. This is happening against the backdrop of a retreat in the Kharkov region, the loss of the estuary and partial mobilization. About who and how criticizes the ministry – in the material of RTVI.
The first large-scale criticism of the Russian Ministry of Defense began in the first half of September, when Russian troops went to the Kharkov region. Then the Russian military and pro-Russian telegram channels reproached the ministry for not commenting on the outcome of Balakliya, Kupyansk and Izyum.
For example, one of the most popular patriotic channels Rybar (almost 1 million subscribers) September 10 published a post stating that “now is not the moment when you can be silent and not say anything,” as well as recommendations from the Ministry of Defense to take “the information situation at the front into your own hands.” The pro-Russian telegram channel MIG, which has almost half a million subscribers, criticized department due to the absence in the official summary of “information about what happened over the past 2-3 days.”
By the evening of September 10, the Ministry of Defense announced that in order to “achieve the goals” as part of the industrial operation, a decision was made to “regroup troops” in the Balakleya and Izyum regions “to increase results in the Donetsk region.”
One of the main leaders of the Ministry of Defense is the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. On September 11, the head of the republic said that the Russian army “made mistakes” during the fighting in the Kharkov region. Kadyrov said that if “today or tomorrow” there were no changes in the framework of the regional strategy, then he would be forced to “reach out to the leadership of the Ministry of Defense, the leadership of the country in order to explain to them the situation that is really happening there on earth.”
A few days later, Kadyrov was perplexed about the conclusion of the prisoners, as a result of which the Ukrainian military, who were defending the Azovstal plant in Mariupol, were released. He wrotethat “he is extremely dissatisfied with yesterday’s exchange” and “the situation itself” is “generally incomprehensible” for him. In his opinion, the defenders of Azovstal are “fascists” and “territorialists” who could not be exchanged for mobile military, and the exchange itself was made “on Ukrainian terms.” At the same time, Kadyrov acknowledged that “at the top in the Ministry of Defense and the FSB, they are much more visible.”
The Ministry of Defense, which put into operation during the entire period of hostilities, which then confirmed the exchange of prisoners, was talking about“In captivity, there was mortal danger.”
On October 1, Kadyrov again criticized Russia’s military aviation, this time because of the retreat of the Russian army in Krasny Liman. According to the opinion, the commander of the Central Military District, Colonel General Alexander Lapin, is to blame for the loss of the city. The head of Chechnya said that Lapin led the defense of this sector and impassable troops “the necessary communications, interaction and transportation of vehicles.” Kadyrov called the general “a mediocrity” who “because of the discovery of a threat in the General Staff at the top.”
Kadyrov supported the businessman, the founder of PMC Wagner Yevgeny Prigozhin. His statement published the press service of the Concord company, owned by Prigozhin: “Kadyrov’s expressive application, of course, is not at all in my style. But I can say: “Ramzan, handsome, burn.” All these thugs – with machine guns barefoot to the front. Later, in response to a request from Meduza*, Prigozhin declaredwhich does not support Kadyrov in his criticism of military aviation.
This was not the first time that Kadyrov strengthened the Ministry of Defense, and Prigozhin supported him. On September 24, the head of Chechnya welcomed half of the Russian security forces to be called to the front, and the creator of the Wagner PMC said saidwhich agrees with Kadyrov.
Criticized the Russian troops because of the situation in Liman, the former commander of the 58th Army, a member of the State Duma Committee on Defense Andrei Gurulev. He was perplexed, “why for all the time they did not appreciate the correct orientation, did not strengthen the grouping.” “I fully agree with Ramzan Akhmatovich Kadyrov in this part. The problem is not that the commander of the operation group of the Central Military District misjudged the environment. The problem is in general lies, a reaction is revealed. This system goes from top to bottom.” wrote he is in his telegram channel.
the Ministry of Defense is often criticized by the former Minister of Defense of the DPR Igor Strelkov (Girkin). He notes that “if they fight like this, as our troops have been fighting for six months under the sensitivity of the RF Ministry of Defense, then we are, in terms of tolerance, in most cases a crushing defeat.” In early October, he commented on the message of the Ministry of Defense that the Armed Forces of Ukraine had penetrated the Russian defense force in the annexation of the village of Zolotaya Balka on the banks of the Dnieper in the Kherson region.
“Purely interesting – for whom do we make reports in the Ministry of Defense? For the population or personally for Vladimir Vladimirovich? If for the population, then all of its educated part (which is interested in the war and surfs the Internet) already knows for a day that Zolotaya Balka is at least 10 km behind the lines of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since the evening before yesterday. The action is like Zolotaya Balka, that Kherson, that Taganrog – it makes no difference – “somewhere there, in Ukraine.” Until “Rostov-on-Don” or “Simferopol” sounded in the reports, you can not be afraid of any reaction “from words at all”, – wrote Strelkov.
On October 6, with criticism of the Ministry of Defense, Oleg Tsarev became a former deputy of the Verkhovna Rada and the former chairman of the so-called parliament of Novorossiya. In his fast he noted that “a special operation was launched, but they did not reach Kyiv, they did not reach Kharkov.” He also mentioned a “series of redeployments,” a report from the Ministry of Defense, as a result of army troops covering “a significant part of the surveillance.”
“And the worst thing about all this is that we do not draw conclusions and make the same mistakes over and over again. By their actions or inaction, the leadership submits to what has put Russia under the threat of destruction, and brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. And what is the result? Nothing. No one pleaded guilty or resigned. It is obvious that shooting, as the aristocrats led in the eighteenth study did, was not carried out with us. But they shot not only in ancient times, both Soviet and German officers shot during the war. Honor and dignity were in use, ”wrote Tsarev.
Kirill Stremousov, deputy head of the administration of the Kherson region, made a similar message. At the same time, he asked not to cast “a shadow on the entire Ministry of Defense” because of some “talentless military leaders who really did not bother and did not answer for all those requests and gaps that currently exist.” “Yes, indeed, today many say that in the place of the Minister of Defense, who allowed this state of affairs, he could simply shoot himself as an officer. But for many, the word officer is an incomprehensible word, ”Stremousov said.
Supported Tsareva and former adviser to the speaker of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin Anastasia Kashevarova. In her opinion, “Russia is now in a rush, on the one hand, the sabotage of the army, on the other, if this is found, then this is a threat of losing more prospects for us, and in the future, a nuclear war, and in the future, a popular revolt.” There are only three ways out of this situation, Kashevarova believes, one of the ones that has taken place is “taking the best shots, which, of course, will please the people and raise the morale of the army, but it is not known who will be appointed, and whether the situation is worse.”
This is not the first time Kashevarova has criticized the country’s military leadership. On October 5, in a post about “abandoned” mobilized Russians, she turned to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, writing that “you can’t do this with people.” “It’s a shame. General destruction, that you are Teflon, that any negative information flies away from you. The world is changing. Nobody is Teflon,” she said.
Head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Colonel-General Andrey Kartapolov (United Russia) to pay The Ministry of Defense “stop lying”, as this is due to the loss of credit of trust of the Russians. On the air of Soloviev. Live,” he said that all the border villages of the Belgorod region were practically destroyed, but “we are representatives of different countries – from governors and military correspondents, but the reports of the Ministry of Defense do not change.”
The Russian Defense Ministry did not comment on the criticism. The Kremlin used only Kadyrov’s statements about the General Staff and General Lapin. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there are offenses in the regions, but in exceptional cases, emotions should be excluded from assessments.
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