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Pentagon Leaks Reveal Discord Among Russian Officials Over Ukraine War’s Death Toll

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Recently leaked US documents have brought to light that disputes within Russia’s security apparatus have led to the country’s defence ministry being accused of intentionally undercounting the number of casualties resulting from the Ukraine conflict.

Publicly, Russia has been reticent about disclosing the extent of its losses during the conflict. However, according to the leaked files, the FSB security service claimed that officials were neglecting to include the deaths of various groups, including the Russian National Guard and Wagner mercenaries. The Russian government has dismissed the leaks as potentially fabricated and purposely disseminated by the US.

Nevertheless, the documents provide additional evidence to support the already established notion that there have been frequent disagreements between Russia’s military and security entities regarding the management of the Ukraine war and that Russia has refrained from publicising the actual figures regarding deaths and injuries.

The FSB’s estimation of nearly 110,000 casualties in February, as reported in the leaked documents, is still considerably lower than the figures disclosed in previous US leaks this week.

According to those documents, the number of Russian losses ranges between 189,500 and 223,000, with 35,500-43,000 men killed in action. Russia’s most recent official casualty count dates back to September 2022, when officials confirmed the deaths of 5,937 servicemen.

The leaked documents suggest that the military’s reluctance to communicate negative news to higher-ups is demonstrated by its underreporting of casualties within the system. This has led some commentators to speculate that President Vladimir Putin has been shielded from the true extent of Russia’s losses on the battlefield.

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Vladimir Putin Suffers From “Blurred Vision And Numb Tongue”, Doctors Panic Over His Health: Report

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Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, has been in the news frequently since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict last year. According to a fresh report, the Russian President’s health has gotten worse, causing “great pain in his brain, blurred eyesight, and paralysis of the tongue,” according to Metro. This puts doctors in a state of worry.

The latest development occurs while many rumours regarding the Russian President’s declining health condition are circulating.

The General SVR Telegram channel, a Russian publication that has been making allegations about Putin’s ill health, issued the most recent assertions regarding the Russian President’s health.

Putin also claimed “partial loss of sensation in his right arm and leg,” according to the report, necessitating immediate medical attention. Also, a council of medical professionals administered first aid and gave Putin the go-ahead to take medication and take a few days off.

The Russian president reportedly declined to take a nap and requested information about his country’s invasion of Ukraine.

”The president’s relatives were more worried, For them such a sharp deterioration in Vladimir Putin’s health caused a nervous reaction, more like panic. The temporary sharp deterioration in the president’s health has already made those closest to him tense. The sudden death of Putin will put them all in front of the unknown, or rather, on the brink of survival,” said General SVR.

A video showing the President moving his feet in an odd way in February 2023 added to health worries. As seen in various videos posted on social media, the Russian President struggled to control his twitching feet during his meeting with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko.

Both Parkinson’s disease and cancer are reportedly being treated for by the Russian president, according to the Spanish news outlet Marca. In stolen Kremlin emails, a security service insider provided confirmation of this “I can affirm that he has Parkinson’s disease in its early stages, but it is already advancing. This reality would be concealed and denied in every manner imaginable “According to the site, the insider had stated in the emails.

The Russian minister and the Kremlin, however, have repeatedly refuted medical assessments and asserted that the Russian president is in excellent condition.

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“Putin Called Me A War Criminal So He’s Not My Best Friend”: Elon Musk

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Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter, clarified that Vladimir Putin labelled him a “war criminal” and added that he is “not exactly my greatest friend” with Putin. The second-richest person in the world tweeted this in response to a user who questioned why Russian authorities were permitted to use the social media site. The user, Anonymous Operations, provided a screenshot of Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president, who claimed that Ukraine will “vanish” because “no one needs it” in a tweet. The user tagged Elon Musk and questioned why he had permitted Russian officials to re-enter the site.

“I’m told Putin called me a war criminal for helping Ukraine, so he’s not exactly my best friend. All news is to some degree propaganda. Let people decide for themselves,” Mr Musk said in his reply.

The tweet divided users, with some arguing “it’s important to allow everyone to speak freely” and others saying “truth in its pure form is only found in mathematics and empirical engineering”.

Twitter is no longer limiting the reach of Russian official media organisations, according to a story published by The Telegraph on Friday.

Additionally, it noted that Twitter’s timeline, search results, and recommendation tools “are showing Mr. Putin’s presidential account, the Russian Foreign Ministry, and its UK Embassy – all of which had restrictions placed on them when hostilities broke out.”

Mr. Musk has repeatedly shared his thoughts on the war in Russia and Ukraine throughout the crisis. He received credit from Mr. Putin’s advisors for putting out a peace proposal that the West rejected but was seen as favourable by the Russians.
Yet, Mr. Musk received criticism from Russian media in January after his business, SpaceX, gave the Ukrainian military more than 20,000 Starlink satellites.

Vladimir Solovyov, a host on Russian official television, referred to Elon Musk as a “war criminal” during the same conversation. The Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs’ advisor Anton Gerashchenko shared a translated version of the video on Twitter.

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Putin arrest warrant: Biden welcomes ICC’s war crimes charges

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The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, and US Vice President Joe Biden has applauded this. The International Criminal Court (ICC) charged President Putin with war crimes in Ukraine, which President Biden stated the Russian president had “obviously” committed.

The allegations centre on the forcible removal of kids from Ukraine to Russia following Moscow’s incursion in 2022. The warrants have been called “outrageous” by Moscow, which has refuted the accusations.

The move has very little chance of succeeding because the ICC lacks the authority to detain suspects without the cooperation of a nation’s government. Since Russia is not a party to the ICC, the court’s jurisdiction over that nation does not extend to The Hague.

Nevertheless, it might have other effects on Mr. Putin, such making it impossible for him to travel abroad. He might now be detained if he enters any of the 123 states that make up the court.

The third president to receive an ICC arrest warrant is Mr. Putin.

The warrant’s issuance, according to President Biden, “makes a very compelling statement,” despite the fact that the court had no influence in the US as well.

According to him, he obviously committed war crimes, as he told reporters.

It had already been “officially decided” by his administration that Russia had committed war crimes during the conflict in Ukraine, and vice president Kamala Harris had promised that those responsible would “be called to account” in February.

The United Nations also released a report earlier this week that found Moscow’s forced removal of Ukrainian children to areas under its control amounted to a war crime.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) claimed in a statement on Friday that it had solid evidence that Mr. Putin had both worked alone and in concert with others to conduct the crimes. Additionally, he was charged with neglecting to exercise his executive authority to halt the deportation of minors.

Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, is also sought by the ICC for the same offences. The warrants were “based upon forensic evidence, scrutiny, and what’s been spoken by those two persons,” according to ICC prosecutor Karim Khan.

The court ultimately opted to make the arrest warrants public in an effort to prevent more crimes from being committed after first considering keeping them hidden.

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Ukraine war: Russia not to blame for conflict – Putin

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Vladimir Putin asserts that both countries are “sharing a sorrow” and that Russia is not to blame for the conflict in Ukraine. The Russian president stated that he still views Ukraine as a “brotherly nation” in a televised talk with senior military leaders.

He asserted that rather than being the outcome of Russian policy, the conflict was “the product of the policy of third countries.” Outside of Russia, the theory—which contends that Western expansion is the reason—has consistently been refuted. President Putin asserted that the West had “brainwashed,” beginning with Ukraine, the post-Soviet republics.

He said: “For years, we tried to build good-neighbourly relations with Ukraine, offering loans and cheap energy, but it did not work.

“There’s nothing to accuse us of. We’ve always seen Ukrainians as a brotherly people and I still think so.

“What’s happening now is a tragedy, but it’s not our fault.”

President Putin’s persistent worries appear to be related to Nato’s expansion since the Soviet Union’s fall in 1991.

Although the Kremlin has long contended that NATO’s admission of former Soviet allies as members endangers the alliance’s security, Nato’s primary purpose was to thwart Russian expansion following World War Two.

Following the fall of pro-Kremlin Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014 as a result of months of public unrest, tensions between the Kremlin and the West grew.

Military personnel vowed to continue the alleged “special military operation” through 2023 during the speech. The amount of money Russia was willing to spend was unbounded, President Putin added.

Sergei Shoigu, Russia’s minister of defence, suggested raising the minimum age requirement for conscription.

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Ukraine: Russia to deploy musicians to front to boost morale

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In an effort to raise morale, Russia claims it will send musicians to the front lines of its conflict in Ukraine. This week, the defence ministry made an announcement about the creation of the “front-line creative brigade,” saying it would include musicians and singers.

In a Sunday intelligence update, the UK’s ministry of defence emphasised the formation of the brigade. According to the government, Sergei Shoigu, the Russian minister of defence, visited Ukrainian frontline troops. The Russian military’s advanced positions in the area of the special military operation were verified by Mr. Shoigu, according to a statement sent to Telegram by the defence ministry.

Although it was noted that he “spoke with troops on the frontline” and at a “command post,” the BBC is unable to confirm the timing of the visit or whether Mr. Shoigu actually travelled to Ukraine. Low morale is reportedly still a “major weakness throughout most of the Russian army,” according to UK defence experts.

The UK claimed the new creative brigade is in keeping with the historical use of “military music and organised entertainment” to promote morale. This comes after a recent campaign inviting the public to donate musical instruments to troops. However, they questioned if the new brigade would actually divert troops from their main concerns, which were “extremely high mortality rates, weak leadership, pay problems, shortage of equipment and ammunition, and lack of clarity about the war’s objectives”.

Heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces has been going on in the area for months as Russia tries to hold onto its territory after suffering a series of setbacks in eastern Ukraine early this year.

Russian attacks on the town, according to earlier claims made by Western intelligence sources, are being led by the Wagner Group, a private military contractor. In order to launch operations on the Ukrainian-held cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, Moscow intends to utilise the town as a staging area.

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Ukraine war: US says Iran now Russia’s ‘top military backer’

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The US claims that there is now a full-fledged defence alliance between Russia and Iran. According to John Kirby, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council, Russia is providing an unheard-of amount of military assistance.

The US is aware of rumours that the two nations are thinking about producing lethal drones together, he continues. It comes despite initial denials from Tehran after Ukraine charged Iran with providing Russia with “kamikaze” drones used in fatal assaults on October 17.

Later, the Middle Eastern nation acknowledged providing Moscow a small number of drones “several months” prior to the conflict. Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, responded by claiming that this was untrue and that many more Iranian drones were in use.

In the early hours of Saturday, the Ukrainian air force claimed to have shot down 10 of the 15 such drones being deployed to strike southern regions. The majority of his territory experienced power outages, according to the governor of Odesa.

Australia has issued sanctions on three Iranian individuals and one Iranian company for providing drones to Russia for use against Ukraine.

Speaking on Friday, Mr. Kirby asserted that a joint drone-production venture between Iran and Russia would be detrimental to Ukraine, Iran’s neighbours, and the global community.

“Russia is seeking to collaborate with Iran in areas like weapons development, training,” he said, adding that the US fears that Russia intended to “provide Iran with advanced military components” including helicopters and air defence systems.

“Iran has become Russia’s top military backer…” he said. “Russia’s been using Iranian drones to strike energy infrastructure, depriving millions of Ukrainians of power, heat, critical services. People in Ukraine today are actually dying as a result of Iran’s actions.”

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly responded to Mr. Kirby’s remarks by claiming that Iran had turned into one of Russia’s primary military allies and that their alliance was endangering international security.

Iran has sent hundreds of drones to Russia as part of the “sordid negotiations” between the two nations, he claimed. Australia’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, issued the following statement on Saturday: “The sale of drones to Russia is proof of Iran’s contribution to the weakening of international security. This listing emphasises that individuals who give Russia material help will suffer the repercussions.”

Following the murder of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in jail earlier this year, she also announced actions against 19 additional people and two companies, including Iran’s Morality Police, for the cruel treatment of anti-government protestors.

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Kherson: Russia to withdraw troops from key Ukrainian city

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The only regional capital that Russia managed to seize after invading in February is the Ukrainian city of Kherson, and the Russian force has been told to leave. Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the commander of Russia in Ukraine, declared that the city could no longer receive supplies. Russian forces will completely leave the western bank of the River Dnipro as a result of the withdrawal.

In light of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, it represents a severe setback to Russia. According to BBC Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg, it is embarrassing for the Kremlin as well. On Russian official television, the military’s senior brass could be seen making the choice as Gen Surovikin provided updates on the situation in Kherson.

Vladimir Putin, the president, stayed away from the fake event. It seemed as though the mastermind of Russia’s futile invasion of Ukraine had delegated the declaration to his generals.

At the end of September, Mr. Putin announced that Russia had annexed Kherson as well as three other seized territories. The defence should be organised along a barrier line along the Dnipro River in these circumstances, Gen. Surovikin told the gathering.

At the beginning of the conflict, Russian forces pushed across southern Ukraine from the occupied Crimea, capturing Kherson in early March. However, Ukrainian authorities were wary of their choice to retreat over the Dnipro River. Mykhailo Podolyak, a presidential adviser, cautioned that it would be premature to take the news at its value.

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Russia to ban sharing LGBT ‘propaganda’ with adults as well as children

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The contentious Russian ban on disseminating alleged “homosexual propaganda” appears to be expanding to include all adults. With this change, a 2013 regulation that made it illegal to tell minors about being LGBT has been made much stricter.

For encouraging what Russia refers to as “non-traditional sexual interactions,” those found guilty face significant fines. The Russian State Duma passed the extension’s initial approval with a unanimous majority.

Officials had earlier this week lobbied members of Russia’s lower house of parliament to approve the extension, framing it as a component of a larger conflict with the West over civilizational norms and connecting it to the decision to invade Ukraine.

Information about “non-traditional lifestyles” or “the rejection of family values” would be viewed legally on par with pornography, the encouragement of violence, or igniting racial, ethnic, or religious tensions under the plan.

Additionally, it outlaws “promotion of paedophilia,” which the Russian government frequently equates with homosexuality.

The additions also forbid any information that could “lead minors to desire to change their sex,” a reference to transgender individuals.

Infractions of the ban are punishable by fines ranging from 50,000 roubles (£705; $815) to 400,000 roubles, and non-Russians who do so risk being expelled from the nation.

Although the proposal has widespread support, it must first be approved by the Federation Council, the Russian parliament’s upper house, before Vladimir Putin can sign it into law.

One of the law’s leading supporters claimed on Monday that the sharing of information about LGBT individuals with Russians was a part of a “hybrid war” being fought by the West against the nation. Politicians in the Duma heard this argument.

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Elon Musk denies he spoke to Putin about Ukraine war

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Elon Musk has refuted claims that he communicated with Vladimir Putin before putting his recommendations for stopping Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in a Twitter poll.

Head of the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group Ian Bremmer claimed that Mr. Musk had personally briefed him about the chat with Mr. Putin.  However, Mr. Musk has since denied this.

“Putin and I have only communicated once, perhaps 18 months ago. The topic concerned space, “Musk posted a tweet.

The Tesla CEO invited his 107.7 million followers to vote on how to end the conflict in Ukraine last week.

One of the ideas was to organise elections in regions of Ukraine that Russia claims it has seized and has occupied. His remarks were well received in Moscow.

If the people’s will is to have Russia go, the multibillionaire said. Four Ukrainian regions have already been annexed by Russia, according to President Putin, after phoney referendums that Kyiv and its Western partners deemed fake. All four of these regions are not entirely under Russian authority.

The illegally annexed Crimea by Moscow in 2014, according to Mr. Musk, should be “officially” recognised as a part of Russia. According to Mr. Bremmer’s account in a newsletter, Mr. Musk told him that the Russian president was “prepared to negotiate,” but only if Ukraine agreed to some form of permanent neutrality, Crimea remained under Russian control, and Kyiv acknowledged Russia’s annexation of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia.

Mr. Bremmer claimed that the CEO of SpaceX had informed him that Mr. Putin had stated that these objectives would be achieved “no matter what” and that a nuclear attack may be launched if Ukraine attacked Crimea.

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