Vladimir Putin Fires Five Top Russian Generals As Ukraine Invasion Passes 100th Day

Amid huge casualties on the Russian side of the invasion of Ukraine, and the unexpected inability to conquer key areas like the capital city of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has axed five top military generals and one police colonel in an attempt to reshuffle some of the leadership responsible for actions in Ukraine.

The five Major Generals who were fired, according to a report by the state newspaper Pravda, were Vasily Kukushkin, Alexander Laas, Andrey Lipilin, Alexander Udovenko and Yuri Instrankin. Police Colonel Emil Musin was also let go from his position as deputy head of the Forensic Expert Center in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. All of the generals had various department head positions at this Ministry as well, which is the law-enforcement body of the country.

Two other generals responsible for key strategic failures on the ground in Ukraine were also fired several weeks ago, so the Russian President clearly isn’t pleased with the military leadership on display right now. Along with devastating losses among Russian soldiers that still haven’t been fully tallied, hundreds of Russian soldiers have even reportedly left their posts and abandoned the invasion. Over ten Russian generals have been killed in action as well.

Putin’s unprovoked invasion of the country began 100 days ago on Friday, and even if Ukraine has been bravely resisting the takeover, destruction and suffering are still a daily occurrence.

A Red Cross representative said “the scale of destruction in cities defies comprehension. Homes, schools and hospitals have been destroyed and civilians have suffered the horrors of conflict, with lives lost and families torn apart. The UN refugee agency also shared the devastating fact that one-third of Ukraine’s population has had to flee their homes because of the combat.

In a contrast to Putin’s firings, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recorded a video marking the invasion’s 100th day with a message of unity and flanked by his colleagues. “The leaders of parliamentary factions are here, the president’s chief of staff is here, Prime Minister of Ukraine Shmyhal is here … our team is much bigger. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are here. Most importantly, the people of our country, are here.”