Vladimir Putin has dealt a double blow to his war effort in Ukraine, losing a military intelligence colonel and a decorated paratrooper within days as Britain estimates Russia has suffered as many as 200,000 casualties.
Lieutenant Colonel Viktor Fursov, 37, was killed in a combat operation, although the exact circumstances of his death have not been disclosed.
He has since been posthumously awarded the Russian Order of Valor and his funeral will take place on Friday.
The army’s intelligence officer received his training at the Novosibirsk Higher Military Command School at the Faculty of Intelligence.
A second strike in Ukraine also killed a Russian paratrooper whom Putin honored in his New Year’s address.
Lieutenant Colonel Viktor Fursov (left), 37, was killed during a combat operation, although the exact circumstances of his death have not been disclosed. A second setback also saw the death of Oberleutnant Yuri Schneider – a Russian paratrooper honored by Putin in his New Year’s speech (pictured right) – in Ukraine
A Ukrainian tank drives on a snowy road as military mobility continues in the Russian-Ukrainian war in Donbass, Ukraine, February 14, 2023
26-year-old senior lieutenant Yuri Schneider, like Fursov, was among those killed in record losses in the Kremlin dictator’s war.
We can explain that media, citing Russian colleagues, claimed that Schneider sacrificed his life by using his body as a shield to protect his comrades from a grenade.
This account could not be verified immediately.
Schneider was seen as Putin addressed Russians with a warmongering anti-Western speech to troops serving in Ukraine on New Year’s Eve.
He stood just behind Putin’s right shoulder.
Typically, the Russian president uses the Kremlin as the backdrop for his annual midnight speech, which is broadcast across all 11 of Russia’s time zones as the New Year approaches.
Schneider later said in a TV interview: “Immediately before the turn of the year, the commander in chief [Vladimir Putin] awarded me the Order of Valor.
“It was a great joy in my life to receive such an award from the Commandant General. I will remember this for the rest of my life,” he said.
The footage was filmed by the pro-Kremlin media Izvestia and used for propaganda purposes.
He said: “I arrived in my unit with a fighting spirit and ready to go to victory alone and alone.”
Schneider was seen as Putin addressed Russians with a warmongering anti-Western speech to troops serving in Ukraine on New Year’s Eve. He stood just behind Putin’s right shoulder
Pictured: Vladimir Putin receives a bag which he gives to skydiver Schneider (seen left)
Ukraine and its Western allies say Putin is sacrificing an unprecedented number of Russian soldiers in a war to illegally invade the sovereign state.
Some reports say that more than 800 Russians are being killed on the battlefield every day, amid allegations that Putin is using mobilized troops as cannon fodder in WWI-style tactics on the Eastern Front.
Estimates of Russia’s casualties in the war vary, but they are now likely to exceed 100,000. Ukraine says more than 140,000 deaths have occurred since February 2022.
In an intelligence update on Friday, Britain’s Ministry of Defense said Russian troops – including the private military company Wagner – had “probably” suffered between 175 and 200,000 casualties since the start of Putin’s invasion.
‘This probably includes around 40-60,000 deaths. Russia’s casualty count has increased significantly since September 2022, when “partial mobilization” was introduced,” the update said.
The defense ministry said the ratio of Russian dead to wounded was high by modern standards, suggesting that wounded soldiers were receiving poor medical treatment.
“By modern standards, these numbers represent a high percentage of the number of deaths compared to the number of injuries,” the update said. “This is almost certainly due to the extremely rudimentary medical facilities in much of the force. Artillery almost certainly accounted for the majority of Russian casualties.
“Wagner PMC troops used large numbers of convict recruits. These probably had a casualty rate of up to 50 percent,” she added.
Meanwhile, Putin officially appointed Lieutenant General Rustam Muradov (49) as commander of the Eastern Military District on Friday.
He has been working for several months now.
He will be in charge of Eastern Russia, but last month he was in the war zone – in Western Russia – with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
Muradov has been described by critics as a “cruel and incompetent” commander accused of treating Marines like “meat” and lying about military casualties to win Russia’s highest medal. He was also dubbed “Mediocre” for his role during the war.
Other confirmed changes were Lieutenant General Evgeny Nikiforov, 52, appointed commander of the Western Military District, and Colonel General Sergeyl Kuzovlev, 56, commander of the Southern Military District forces.
Pictured: A destroyed Russian tank is seen on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine on Thursday
In the photo: A soldier of Ukraine’s state border guard fires a mortar at the Russian position in Bakhmut on February 16
As the list of Russian military disasters grew throughout the war, Putin made several changes to the behavior of his armies.
A recent change that Russian milbloggers criticized Putin for was the appointment of Colonel General Alexander Lapin as chief of staff of the country’s ground forces.
Lapin, formerly commander of Russia’s Central Military District, was bombed by aggressive Putin allies last October after Russian troops were driven from the eastern Ukrainian city of Lyman, a key logistics hub.
Lyman’s defeat was considered Ukraine’s most humiliating defeat to date, largely due to the situation in eastern Ukraine, where Russian forces are strongest.
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Elizabeth Cabrera is an author and journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a talent for staying up-to-date on the latest news and trends, Elizabeth is dedicated to delivering informative and engaging articles that keep readers informed on the latest developments.
