Dismissal of General Popov
British see great dissatisfaction in Moscow’s officer corps
07/15/2023, 1:30 p.m
General Ivan Popov is relieved of his command because he criticizes the Russian military leadership. For British intelligence, the case is an example of growing dissatisfaction within the army.
According to British intelligence, several officers in the Russian army are dissatisfied with the military leadership. “Direct criticism from subordinates is likely to become an increasing problem for Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff General Gerasimov,” the Defense Ministry said in London. In their daily situation report, the British deal with the dismissal of General Ivan Popov. He had criticized his superiors and the conduct of the war in Ukraine and had been dismissed as commander of the 58th Army.
“Popov’s comments draw attention to the deep dissatisfaction that many officers are likely to harbor with senior military leadership,” the British wrote. The complaints were broadly similar to those voiced by the head of Russia’s private army Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, prior to his mutiny. Prigozhin had repeatedly denounced weakness in leadership, chaos and incompetence under Defense Minister Shoigu. In June, Prigozhin instigated an uprising, but broke it off shortly afterwards.
In a report last week, the US think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW) identified serious problems in Moscow’s command structures. Popov’s goal may have been to remove Gerasimov as supreme commander for the war against Ukraine. The chief of staff, however, tries to prevent criticism and not let it get through to Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. “The increasingly fragile Russian chain of command could lead to a critical command and control crisis in the future, in which field commanders’ support for the Russian military command could become weaker and weaker,” the analysts at ISW said.