Russian officers are reportedly fleeing the front lines en-mass and transferring to units in the rear to avoid combat, according to Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR).
“More than 45% of the officers in the Russian Armed Forces’ reserve units within the Southern Military District have no legal authority to be serving in rear areas,” HUR reported on Telegram.
Documents signed by Lieutenant General Mikhail Zusko, Chief of Staff of the Southern Military District, reveal that over 900 officers were unjustifiably transferred to rear positions – at least 200 of them were assigned to fully staffed units, HUR said.
It also reported cases where these “reservists” were later allowed to voluntarily leave the service altogether.
This mass withdrawal from the front – disguised as formal transfers – is a sign of growing demoralization and a deepening crisis within Russia’s military leadership, HUR said.
“Faced with the scale of losses and the near certainty of death, officers of the aggressor state are desperately trying to avoid combat at all costs,” the agency stated.
Russian officers have also been frequent targets of sabotage, both in Russian-occupied territories and inside Russia itself.
But the officers are still targets
At the end of May, HUR reported that four officers from Chechnya’s “Akhmat” unit were killed in a car bomb blast near Skadovsk in the occupied Kherson region.
The Akhmat unit, which calls itself a special rapid reaction force, is officially part of Russia’s National Guard but operates under the direction of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Formed in 2009, the unit was originally created to fight supporters of the Chechen Ichkeria Republic.
According to HUR, a UAZ Patriot vehicle carrying the officers exploded while traveling between Skadovsk and Antonivka, about 60 kilometers (37.5 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled territory.
A second blast followed, which HUR said was caused by the detonation of ammunition the Chechen troops had been transporting.
This incident is the latest in a series of operations targeted against Russian military figures.
In mid-April, Yevgeny Rytikov, chief engineer at the Bryansk Electromechanical Plant, a key figure in the development of Russia’s electronic warfare capabilities, was killed when his car exploded.
Rytikov had been working on upgrades to the Krasukha electronic warfare system, which is used against Ukrainian and NATO aircraft and drones. Ukrainian intelligence did not officially confirm involvement, but sources described the assassination as “just punishment.”
On April 25, another high-profile figure, Russian General Yaroslav Moskalik, Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff’s Main Operational Directorate, was killed near Moscow when an explosive device hidden in a parked Volkswagen Golf detonated as he passed by, killing him instantly.
Ukrainian MP Roman Kostenko, Secretary of the National Security Committee, later confirmed in an interview that Ukrainian intelligence operatives carried out the attack. Kostenko praised the operation, saying such missions will remain a central part of Ukraine’s defense strategy even if a ceasefire is eventually reached.
President Volodymyr Zelensky also confirmed Moskalik’s death, crediting Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service with eliminating members of Russia’s senior military leadership.