- Jane Monaghan
- Media Follow Up Department – BBC
1 hour ago
photo released, Getty Images
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and military commander Valery Gerasimov faced criticism for their handling of the war
The withdrawal of Russian forces from the strategically important city of Lyman in eastern Ukraine has attracted rare public criticism of senior army officers, from prominent Russian figures and influential social media accounts.
But it is not opposition or anti-war voices that are driving this wave of discontent, but rather pro-war voices that have become dissatisfied with the way the Defense Ministry is conducting its war in Ukraine.
Ramzan Kadyrov, the powerful leader of the Russian Republic of Chechnya and a staunch supporter of President Vladimir Putin, was among the first to comment on Lyman’s loss.
In an October 1 telegram, Kadyrov blamed General Alexander Lapin, commander of the Russian Central Military District and senior officers of the Russian general staff, of the loss.
“If it were up to me, I would throw Lapin back to second class soldier, deprive him of his rewards and give him an assault rifle, and send him to the front to wash his shame with blood,” he said in his post. The post has been viewed more than 7.6 million times.
His criticism of the Russian military leadership was later approved by Kremlin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, media magnate and founder of the Wagner PMC.
“The expressive post made by Kadyrov doesn’t quite match my style. But I can tell him, Ramadan, you are a star, say it as it is!”
Is the political landscape changing in Moscow?
The Russian media landscape is tightly censored, so it was no surprise that the country’s three major television channels downplayed the withdrawal from Lyman in their prime-time evening news on October 2 and completely ignored it in their morning news on the day. following.
However, video-sharing platforms like YouTube and social media like Telegram are gaining popularity in Russia – with sites like Facebook and Instagram banned – and here to find more criticism of top Russian officials.
Appearing on the YouTube channel of Vladimir Solovyov, a pro-Kremlin media figure, on October 1, former deputy general Andrei Gorolev said he “could not explain Lyman’s departure.”
photo released, Getty Images
State TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov (right) is one of Vladimir Putin’s strongest supporters
“This could be a symbolic turning point, not only militarily but also politically,” he said.
He then tried to back up Kadyrov’s vitriolic criticism of the Russian leadership over Lyman’s loss, before being interrupted by the presenter, who said it was up to officials to comment on Kadyrov’s comments.
There was also a lively discussion on Telegram channels of Russian nationalists after the loss of Lyman, with blogger Anastasia Kashivarova being particularly outspoken.
In a Telegram post viewed more than 1.2 million times, he violently attacked those who defended General Lapin in the face of Kadyrov’s criticism and who refused to acknowledge that “there are questions” to be answered by the Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov.
“Are you men or not? Do you have bullets or not? Why do you still soften your words so that something bad doesn’t happen?” Kashivarova said, adding, “You still defend Labin in your cowardly places.”
He went on to ask, “Does the president know what’s going on, is anyone showing him? Where are the supplies, where are the tanks? Where is everything? How did this come about? Did he steal everything? Was it sold out? Where did it all go? Was it there? ” “.
However, Redovka, the pro-Kremlin news channel Telegram, opposed the military’s public criticism in principle.
“Reckless (Russian) can sometimes be worse than (the) enemy commandos and saboteurs,” he said in an Oct.1 post, which received over 1.4 million views. He went on to accuse zealous Russian patriots of doing the enemy’s work on his behalf, trying to pin the blame.
