VLADIMIR Putin has fired his top general amid ongoing humiliating blows from Ukraine.
General Alexander Lapin, 61, was reportedly sacked for failing to sweep through the Sumy region – considered one of the tyrant’s key war goals.
Vladimir Putin has fired Colonel General Alexander Lapin
He was a prominent Russian commander criticised for his handling of the Kremlin’s war effort
Lapin was formerly a favourite of Putin’s and received several medals
Putin has seen him now fail to sweep through a region he craves
Once a decorated militant, he was awarded the Kremlin’s top honour: the Hero of Russia.
Despite his many medals, however, he came under fire and was criticised as “incompetent” by military experts.
Putin ally , head of , said of him three years ago: “If I had my way, I would have demoted Lapin to private, deprived him of his awards, and sent him to the front line to wash off his shame with the rifle in his hands.”
Reports suggest Russia lost three battalions in its attempt to capture the Sumy region as Ukraine continues to grind down on Vlad.
His dismissal, however, has raised suspicions Putin is looking for scapegoats to explain his humiliating military defeats.
This includes his slow territorial gains into Ukraine while losing millions of men both injured and killed.
He was also earlier blamed for Ukraine’s impressive advance into Russia’s Kursk region, which the tyrant only narrowly pushed back on thanks to North Korean forces.
During the war, Lapin commanded the Centre group of forces, reaching the title Hero of Russia.
A year later, he was appointed Chief of the General Staff of Russian Ground Forces.
Later he commanded the Leningrad Military District, then the North group.
In his new role, he will be in charge of recruiting contract soldiers in Tatarstan, the 44th largest region in Russia.
He will also liaise with service families including widows of fallen soldiers.
It comes as analysts have recognised how Ukraine has been heavily defending a key town for over a year in its war with Russia.
The key town of has also been deemed strategically critical for Putin’s territorial ambitions.
Lapin is now to become an assistant to the head of Tatarstan region
The role is much more insignificant in charge of recruiting contract soldiers
As a vital railway and transport hub, Provosk could give Russia a huge supply line if captured, according to intelligence officer Philip Ingram.
It has been nicknamed the “gateway to Donetsk” by Russian media with key crossroads that could enable Putin the seize the rest of the area.
Putin has also revealed how he just about “dodged” death trying to fire up the engine of a motorbike.
The 72-year-old told Andrei Belousov of the incident: “I once got on a motorcycle, revved it.
“And it went into a spin and flipped over.
“I just dodged it at the last second. It fell right next to me.”
The Russian leader has long sought to cultivate an image as a as part of his domestic persona.
He shared the motorbike anecdote dressed in military fatigues – despite being hundreds of miles from the war zone.
