Striking new images of war graves highlight the magnitude of the death toll Vladimir Putin inflicted on his fighters in Ukraine.
The graveyard of Goryachiy Klyuch in the Krasnodar region is reserved for troops of Wagner’s private army supporting the Russian invasion.
This force, made up of volunteers, mercenaries and prisoners, has left tens of thousands dead, tied up in suicidal “human wave” death squads and thrown to the front lines with no hope of returning.
The graveyard — described as “so big it’s impossible to walk on” — came about when veteran Russian political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin said there are now signs that key players in the dictator’s inner circle are moving away from him to prevent him from being killed. they drown in his “bloody swamp.”
Rows of graves marked with flowers and crosses mark the fallen in Krasnodar, southern Russia
A crying Russian woman, filming, says the graveyard is so big it’s impossible to walk on
In this necropolis lie men whose relatives have not asked to be buried in their home region. Many more corpses lie unclaimed on the battlefield.
The commentary on the video is from a crying Russian woman who says: “It’s such a big cemetery, all the graves are new…
“There is no end in sight… There are young men and men of all ages.
‘Rest in peace. You can’t even walk to the other end, this is such a big graveyard at Goryachiy Klyuch.’
It was “impossible to count the graves,” she said.
There are visibly many more graves than in January.
“My soul is bleeding,” she said.
Wagner Group is trying to extend the granted permission for 700 graves.
Political analyst Oreshkin told We Can Explain media: “The more Putin dives into the bloody swamp, the fewer people want to drown with him.”
He named ex-ministers Arkady Dvorkovich and Alexei Kudrin, as well as billionaires Vladimir Lisin, who owns a Scottish castle, and Oleg Deripaska, as former close figures who now shun the dictator.
Another is Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, one of his closest allies to date.
“They understand that Putin is toxic,” he said.
“Everyone is being driven into one bottleneck and Vladimir Putin is the cork in that.
“The question is whether this bottle will burst from the inside under pressure, as was the case in the Soviet Union.
“If Putin gets toxic, this cork will corrode a bit.
‘The problem is simple: which is more likely: the cork will rot under the pressure of the acidic contents, or the bottle will explode?
“The most intelligent people understand the need to separate from it.
“They understand that the boss is leading the country into a dead end.”
Putin has tried to bring loyalists closer as support for his disastrous war in Ukraine has dwindled.
Earlier this month, an elite Russian tank bridge reportedly refused orders after being told to drive to their deaths through an infamous Ukrainian minefield.
In February, Ukrainian intelligence reported that members of Putin’s circle were now spying for Ukraine as the situation for Russia worsened.
In January Putin to replace top General Sergei Surovikin, who organized Russia’s retreat from Kherson with a difficult crossing of the Dnipro, with Putin loyalist General Valery Gerasimov, who led the messy first invasion of Ukraine.
The commentary on the video is from a crying Russian woman who says: ‘It’s such a big cemetery, all the graves are new…’
There are visibly many more graves than in January. Wagner Group is trying to extend the granted permission for 700 graves
A black and white flag flew over some of the graves in the cemetery
Almost every grave had a garland of flowers on top of the fresh soil at the cemetery in Krasnodar, a city in southern Russia formerly connected to Crimea by the Kerch Bridge
Arkady Dvorkovich, 51, Russian politician and economist, singled as one of former ministers now ‘shunning’ Putin
Alexei Kudrin, 62, Russian economist and politician meets Vladimir Putin at the Moscow Kremlin. Kudrin was also cited as one of the members of Putin’s inner circle who distanced himself
The images of the cemetery come from Krasnodar, a city in southern Russia that was previously connected to Crimea via the Kerch Bridge.
The Kerch Bridge was Reportedly reopened last Thursday, almost half a year since it was badly damaged by an explosion in October.
Krasnodar is famous for the 1943 war crimes trial against Soviets who had collaborated with Nazi Germany. It was the first war crimes trial of World War II.