Putin pardoned General Spartak: ‘It will lead the infamous battalion, it is the death verdict’
Ivan Popov, a military nickname Spartak was one of the most prominent Russian generals. After criticizing the Ministry of Defense two years ago, they dismissed and detained it. According to his lawyer, he now returns to the front, he writes CNN.
Still, it’s not all so beautiful. He will belong to the infamous role. He got the so -called Poison cup, command of the infamous battalion of former prisoners who suffered huge losses in Ukraine.
Popov was once a distinguished Commander of the 58th Combined Army in southern Ukraine, receiving praise for his leadership. Then he made a mistake – he sent a voice message to his colleagues in which he sharply criticized the leadership of the Ministry of Defense, stating that he had been discharged for complaints.
In a message sent in July 2023, Popov stated: « The armed forces of Ukraine could not break through our army from the front, (but) our higher commander hit us from the back, insidious and subjugated by a decaying army in the most difficult and most intense moment. » Most of his anger were directed at the Chief of the Russian Military Staff, Valeria Gerasimov.
Popov said that when he complained about the lack of artillery support and other problems, « higher commanders felt the danger in me and quickly, in one day, came up with a command for the Minister of Defense, removed me from the command and got rid of me. »
Anger on all sides
His shift caused anger among Russian ultra -nationalists, officers and veterans. Kateryna Stepanenko of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) based in Washington, states that they accused the Russian Ministry of Defense of removing pops to cover up problems in the Russian army. The military establishment was particularly sensitive to criticism at the time – less than a month after the failed rebellion of Jevgenija Prigozin, head of the Wagner pay group.
Popova was first sent to Syria as a deputy commander of the Russian contingent, but in May last year he was arrested for alleged fraud, an accusation he consistently denied. Prosecutors sought a six -year prison sentence if convicted, and Popov was fired from the armed forces. Nevertheless, his supporters continued to support him.
Stepanenko believes that Kremlin « mostly failed to convince Russian ultra -nationalists, officers and veterans in Popov’s alleged involvement in the case of pronelje, resulting in constant negative reactions on the Internet. »
At the end of March, Popov wrote an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, published in the state media, urging that he would be allowed to return to the battlefield. He described Putin as his « moral guide and role model » whose example « finally helped him understand what the legendary words meant: ‘Cold head, warm heart and clean hands.' »
His wish is now, in a way, heard. Last week, Russian state media reported that his lawyer and the Ministry of Defense agreed on Popov’s request to return to active service instead of confronting the possibility of a prison sentence. His lawyer, Sergei Buinovski, as he says: « We, together with the Ministry of Defense, have a proposal to suspend the case … With a positive decision to send Ivan Ivanovich to all (special military surgery). » Moscow continues to use this term for invasion of Ukraine’s full extent that she launched in 2022.
It has not yet been confirmed whether the military court approved the agreement, but Popovlov’s supporters among Russian military bloggers were looking forward to. « The legendary combat general returned to the front! » wrote the popular blogger Vladimir Rogov.
However, there was a twist. Popov will not return to his beloved 58. On Thursday, the Russian Business Diary of Kommersant reported that Popov « would be sent to all as an ordinary assault, but as commander of one of the units of ‘Storm Z’, » quoting the source in security forces. On the same day, spokesman Kremlin Dmitry Peskov refused to comment on « the intention of General Popov, accused of embezzlement, to participate in a special surgery. »
The notorious unit of « Storm z »
The award of the “Storm z” unit is considered extremely dangerous. Kateryna Stepanenko describes Popov’s task as « an effective death judgment because the Russian military command primarily uses the criminal detachments of ‘Storm Z’ in suicide frontal attacks. » These units consist mainly of former prisoners.
The Kremlin continues to support the use of prisoners in combat. Putin recently promised to provide veteran status to members of Storm Z. « We’ll definitely fix it. I don’t see any problems here, » Putin said at a meeting last month.
Popov is introduced to the Russian infamous units of former convicts. While at the helm of the 58th Army, he was associated with the battalion of former prisoners known as « Storm Gladiator, » a special assault unit within « Storm Z ». This unit had « hundreds of convicts with previous military experience who underwent training by former Wagner Group and Chechen ‘Ahmata’ forces, » says Stepanenko. However, she suffered significant losses in what became known as « Meat Grinder Assaults » – frontal pedestrian attacks on well -established positions. According to some investigations, the « Storm Gladiator » has had a survival rate of only 40%.
