Two more Russian commanders killed on Ukrainian front line after top general shot by snipers, Western official says
Two more Russian commanders were killed on the Ukrainian front line after a senior general was shot dead by snipers, a Western official said.
It is reported that the 47-year-old Major General Andrei Sukhovetsky was killed by a Ukrainian sniper, while the latest deaths, as Russia invaded last week, so were the two senior officers.
One was a division commander and the other a regimental commander, the telegraph has reported.
These losses will be borne in Ukraine as another encouraging sign that the Russian invasion is not progressing as planned.
Major General Andrei Sukhovetsky was reportedly killed by a Ukrainian sniper, while the last deaths since Russia invaded last week were both senior officers.
These Russian losses will be borne in Ukraine as another encouraging sign that the Russian invasion is not progressing as planned.
The Western official believes that this is due to the need for commanders to move “closer to the front”, as Russia believes that progress in Ukraine has not yet been made.
“The reason this is happening is that commanders believe they need to move forward to gain more impetus and control over operations,” the official said.
“This may be an indication of a degree of frustration, a degree of lack of progress, and they are trying to impose their identity on the battlefield and then take personal risks.”
Mr Sukhovetsky, deputy commander of the 41st General Army of the Central Military District of Russia, died on Wednesday when Ukrainian defense forces repulsed the Russian offensive.
Andrei Sukhovetsky, deputy commander of the 41st General Military District Army, left, the death was announced on social media by his colleague Sergei Chipilyov, right, and was widely circulated by several Russian and Ukrainian news outlets.
His death, announced on social media by his colleague Sergei Chipilov, was widely reported by several Russian and Ukrainian news outlets, and a military source confirmed that he had been killed by a sniper.
After days of denial, the Kremlin admitted on Wednesday that 498 of its soldiers had been killed and 1,600 wounded in a “special military operation” in Ukraine, but the true figure is almost certainly higher.
Kyiv says Russia has already lost about 9,200 people in the fighting, along with hundreds of tanks, nearly 1,000 armored vehicles and dozens of helicopters and planes.