Russia’s leadership is ‘increasingly dysfunctional’, with a ‘worsening shortage of capable officers’

Russia’s military leadership is “increasingly dysfunctional,” with the war in Ukraine spearheaded by fledgling officers while Putin’s forces are beaten back onto the battlefield.

Four of Russia’s top five generals have been fired since the start of the war, the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) said today, with Sergei Surovikin now in charge.

“Their replacements have so far done little to improve Russia’s performance on the battlefield,” the Defense Ministry added, as Surovikin appeared to be preparing for a retreat from the southern stronghold of Kherson.

British spies did not name the four dismissed generals, but one of them is almost certainly Valery Gerasimov – chief of general staff who was last seen in a tense meeting with Putin during war games in eastern Russia.

The other three are likely to be Aleksandr Dvornikov, Surovikin’s predecessor, Gennady Zhidko, former commander of Russia’s southern armies, and Aleksandr Zhuravlev, who led the western group.

The other three are likely to be Aleksandr Dvornikov (above), Surovikin’s predecessor, Gennady Zhidko, former commander of Russia’s southern armies, and Aleksandr Zhuravlev, who led the western faction

The full MoD update said: “Eight months after the invasion, key elements of Russia’s military leadership are increasingly dysfunctional.

“At the tactical level, there is almost certainly an increasing shortage of skilled Russian NCOs to organize and direct newly mobilized reservists.

Eyewitness accounts suggest the shooting of 11 Russian soldiers near Belgorod by a fellow recruit on Oct. 15, 2022, took place after an officer’s abusive comments towards ethnic minority recruits.

Poor leadership at a lower level is likely to worsen low morale and unity cohesion in many parts of the Russian armed forces.

“Four of the five generals in direct operational command over elements of the February 2022 invasion have now been fired. Their replacements have so far done little to improve Russia’s battlefield performance.

“The lack of continuity of command is likely to be more disruptive than in a Western military, because according to Russian doctrine, the development of plans largely rests with the commander personally, rather than as a collective effort by a wider staff.”

Putin is now eight months into what was supposed to be a war of days that ended with the collapse of the Ukrainian government.

But instead, he’s caught up in a lingering war of attrition that has chopped up his forces and yet could lead to total defeat.

Putin is now eight months into what was supposed to be a war of days that ended with the collapse of the Ukrainian government. Pictured: Aleksandr Zhuravlev

But instead, he’s caught up in a lingering war of attrition that has chopped up his forces and yet could lead to total defeat. Pictured: Gennady Zhidko

Russia has already been forced to withdraw from the cities of Kiev, Chernihiv and Kharkov in northern Ukraine, which were the main targets of the war.

Attacks in the Donbas have proved somewhat more successful, but have not resulted in a decisive victory. Instead, they have undermined Putin’s army of strength to stop Ukraine’s advance elsewhere.

The Kiev men now appear poised to retake at least partial control of the city of Kherson, to the south, as Russian occupation officials begin evacuating civilians.

Volodymyr Saldo, the Kremlin man in Kherson, said 60,000 civilians will leave in the next six days — suggesting the city could fall within a week.

If Russia is forced to retreat here, it would be the most embarrassing defeat Putin has yet suffered — raising fears about how he might respond.

Concerns are growing within Russia that he could use today’s emergency Security Council meeting to declare war in full — giving him sweeping powers to close borders, declare martial law and force more men into the military. .

Meanwhile, speculation is growing in the West that he could stage himself for the first open-air nuclear weapon detonation since the 1960s.

Such an explosion could take place at a proving ground in Russia’s far east, or else over the Black Sea to show that its stockpile of aging nuclear warheads are still working.