Yuri Kobzar10:05, 07/22/232 minutes.3404
The former “DPR” field commander enjoys great prestige among Russian supporters of the war.
The arrest of the former field commander of the “DPR” militants, Igor Girkin , is likely to anger the pro-military part of Russian society. This is reported by British intelligence .
The British note that Girkin has long criticized the Russian Ministry of Defense for the way it wages war against Ukraine.
However, in recent days, he has turned to direct criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin directly, including expressing dissatisfaction with the very fact of his being in power.
The trigger for Girkin, who decided to turn to open criticism of the Putin regime, the British consider the Wagner rebellion and how it ended.
British intelligence reminded that Girkin enjoys a certain authority among the Russian pro-military community, which respects him for his past “merits” in the Donbass in 2014.
“This move (Girkin’s arrest – UNIAN) is likely to infuriate other members of the military blogging community – and members of the army in the field – who generally see Girkin as a shrewd military analyst and patriot,” British intelligence said.The British also believe that today the taboo on criticizing the authorities in Russia has “significantly weakened.”
Girkin’s arrest in Russia – latest news
The day before, a Moscow court sent Igor Girkin to a pre-trial detention center for two months on suspicion of “extremism.” Although the retired terrorist has long and consistently criticized the Russian authorities, only two Telegram posts published on May 25 last year appear in the criminal case against him .
In them, he accused the “authorities of the DPR” of “irresponsibility and sabotage” and stated that “for this it is not enough to shoot.”
Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War believe that the arrest of Girkin right now indicates a sharp shift in the balance of power within the Kremlin elite.
The former terrorist is likely to have come under a large-scale wave of repression aimed at the final suppression of any criticism of the authorities in Russia.
(C)UNIAN 2023