How One Russian General’s Screw-Up May Have Led to Ukraine’s Border Invasion

A Russian general who was recently appointed to a position in charge of border security may have inadvertently laid the groundwork for Ukraine’s successful incursion into the Kursk Oblast, according to a report.

Earlier this year, Col. Gen. Alexander Lapin dissolved an interagency council in charge of border security, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. The council brought together military officers with local and regional security, but Lapin argued that only the military had the resources to defend the border—and that other agencies need not be involved in the process.

It's not the first blunder for Lapin. The general previously drew criticism for his role in the Russian retreat at Lyman—an early defeat for the Russian army at a strategic city in the Ukrainian region of Donbas.

Ramzan Kadyrov , the leader of Chechnya and a close Putin ally, publicly lambasted Lapin for the defeat at Lyman. “I would demote Lapin to private, strip him of his awards and send him to the front lines with a machine gun.”

Yevgeny Prigozhin , the former head of a mercenary outfit called the Wagner Group, also criticized the strategic defeat at the time, stating “All these bastards should be sent barefoot to the front with automatic guns,” Reuters reported after the battle. Despite the criticism, Lyman was still promoted to chief of staff for the Russian Ground Forces in January 2023.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s surprise offensive continued on Tuesday and Wednesday. Last night, Ukrainian forces launched one of the largest drone attacks inside Russia since the war began in 2022, targeting the Russian capital and border regions north of Ukraine.

The Russian military claimed it shot down 45 drones, including 11 over Moscow, Reuters reported. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin claimed on Telegram at least two drones were shot down over the suburb of Podolsk, but caused no damage or casualties.

On Wednesday, Alexander Bogomaz, the governor of Bryansk Oblast, another border region directly northwest of Kursk, said that Russian troops encountered another Ukrainian attempt to capture more territory.

Bogomaz confirmed on his Telegram channel that fighting was “stabilized” and that Ukrainian forces suffered “fire damage.” It is unclear if Ukrainian troops are still present in the region.

Read more at The Daily Beast.