Putin 'fires top Admiral' as Russian military leaders turn on President over Ukraine failure
A senior naval commander has been sacked by Vladimir Putin over his refusal to send more men to fight in Ukraine
Reu
A senior naval commander has been sacked by Vladimir Putin over his refusal to send more men to fight in Ukraine, it has emerged.
Admiral Sergei Avakyants was the commander of Russia's Pacific Fleet before being dismissed from his post last week.
A Russian Defence Ministry source attempted to down play the Admiral's removal, insisting he had decided to retire after a long career.
"The commander of the Pacific Fleet Sergei Avakyants has reached the retirement age [65 years] and was sent to a well-deserved rest with honours," the spokesperson said.
Admiral Sergei Avakyants was the commander of Russia's Pacific Fleet before being dismissed
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Others have claimed that the Admiral was removed from his role after trying to protect his men from further frontline battles in Ukraine.
He is thought to have grown disillusioned about the war in Ukraine, after a group of elite marines from his Pacific Fleet were almost totally wiped out in an attempt to take Vuhledar in February.
During the slaughter, the Russians saw high casualty rates and lost more than 100 pieces of military machinery over just three days.
A surviving marine from the 55th Guards Naval Infantry Brigade told the Russian local media website 7x7: "I wish I had been taken prisoner and never returned."
A Russian General Staff source said: "He told Admiral Nikolay Yevmenov [Commander-in-Chief of the Navy] in plain language that he would not let the fleet be ruined.
"His sailors, trained officers, well-coordinated crews, would not be torn apart."
Avakyants has been replaced by the former head of Russia’s Baltic Fleet, Admiral Viktor Liina.
Following his dismissal, Avakyants will now head a new organisation overseeing centres for military training and patriotic education.
Admiral Sergei Avakyants is thought to have grown disillusioned about the war in Ukraine
Reuters
It comes amid reports that Ukrainian troops have succeeded in gaining a foothold on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, near Kherson city.
"This is the first time ISW has observed reliable geolocated imagery of Ukrainian positions on the east bank along with multi-sourced Russian reports of an enduring Ukrainian presence there," analysts for the US think-tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote in their latest bulletin.
A Ukrainian military spokeswoman for the southern region declined to confirm the reports.
Natalia Humenyuk told TV channel 24 said: "There is an ongoing military operation that requires informational silence. And when it is allowed we will be sure to notify you."
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