War between Ukraine and Russia. A third high-ranking Russian, General Vitaly Gerasimov, was reportedly killed within days. To compensate for the logistical and psychological difficulties of their troops, the officers were forced to go to the front, subject to Ukrainian counterattacks.
As a rule, they are not permanent on the front line. However, on Monday, the chief of staff of the 41st Russian Army, Major General Vitaly Gerasimov, died, Ukraine reports. In a post posted on TwitterUkrainian intelligence agencies indicate that the operation took place near Kharkov, in eastern Ukraine, where fierce fighting has been going on for several days. Other high-ranking officers of the Russian army were reportedly also wounded or killed.
While it is difficult to verify the authenticity of the statements made by both sides in the information war they are waging, investigative reporting agency Bellingcat says it has received the confirmation according to a Russian source. What is attributed to the death of Vitaly Gerasimov.
‼Pid Kharkiv recognized as Major General of the Russian Army Vitalia Gerasimova
👉Details of audio interception on novelties for parcels👉 https://t.co/WMc6D1aBWC pic.twitter.com/mKvCE0gi9P
— Military intelligence of Ukraine (@DI_Ukraine) March 7, 2022
This veteran of the wars in Chechnya, Crimea and Syria will become the second high-ranking Russian officer to die in less than two weeks after the invasion of Ukraine. A few days ago, Russian media have already confirmed the death of Major General Andrei Sukhovetsky, who could become the target of a sniper.
Shortly before this, the Ukrainian army also reported through its account. Twitter the death of Chechen General Magomed Tushaev, notorious for torturing homosexuals in Chechnya.
Dysfunctions and demotivation
Although the exact circumstances of the fighting that allegedly caused the deaths of these officers are still unknown, these unusual losses among high-ranking soldiers show that they are forced to go to the front in person.
Experts offer two explanations. On the one hand, communication difficulties are “far from the brilliantly theorized operational art of the Russian school,” according to a military historian Michael Goya – pushed the Russian officers closer to the field in order to convey orders to the troops. A new Russian encrypted communications system deployed by the Kremlin since last year appears to be failing, particularly in Ukraine.
This is what follows from the conversation between two Russian intelligence officers (FSB) about the death of General Vitaly Gerasimov. Bellingcat media director talks about Twitter that an agent based in Ukraine would ask his boss to contact “through the secure Era system”, but he would answer that it “does not work.”
On the other hand, the proximity of the hierarchical authorities to the battlefield will also be aimed at reassuring and re-motivating the Russian troops, whose morale has fallen half a mast. To the logistical difficulties – lack of food, fuel, cold weather … – is added the fierce resistance of the Ukrainians and the losses, no doubt, are already significant. Some fighters would even choose to desert from a bitter war for which they were not prepared.
At the end of February, Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN Serhiy Kislitsa sent an SMS message to the UN General Assembly, which he attributed to a young Russian soldier: “Mom, I am in Ukraine. This is a real war. I’m afraid we’re fighting against everyone, including civilians.” In early March, a Pentagon official told the New York Times that some Russian troops had already “surrendered en masse or sabotaged their vehicles to avoid fighting.”
A trend that is likely to get worse as the deaths of senior officers exacerbate the current stalemate in the offensive and Russia’s growing political isolation.