With our correspondent in Kyiv, Stephane Siohan
At the moment there is no evidence of the possible impact of the “Russian-Russian crisis” on the battlefield, and it must first be remembered that since the end of the Battle of Bakhmout, the Wagner militia troops have been withdrawn from the battlefield, and in order to tell the truth say, they play a relatively minor role in the defense phase that the Russian army faces today.
Crossed the Dnieper
The Ukrainian counter-offensive continues; In fact, on June 24, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense announced the start of large-scale operations. It will probably be a few days before we know what it is, but as of Sunday there is now apparent evidence that Ukrainian soldiers crossed the Dnieper at Kherson and may have established a bridgehead on the left bank. Fighting has been observed there, it is not the big landing yet, but it shows that Ukrainians are taking the initiative and making progress in several geographical areas.
Coming back to the Wagner affair, it is unlikely to have any immediate consequences at the operational level, but there is still one factor to consider: this weekend, the strange cavalcade of Prigojine militiamen exposed the flaws of the chain the Russian military hierarchy. We haven’t seen anything in these two days, neither Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu nor General-in-Chief of the Russian Army Valeri Guérassimov.
Bad signal to the Russian troops
However, this is a very bad signal to the troops, especially since the Russian army is very vertical and centralized. Russian soldiers at the front can now ask themselves: Who’s the boss? Is there a captain on the ship? Are the army officers loyal or do they support Prigozhin? Ultimately, there could be serious disruptions to the Russian chain of command, which could affect the organization and motivation of soldiers, especially as Ukrainians gain ground.
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