Putin's purge of his spy chiefs as invasion stalls: 150 Russian officers accused of leaks are jailed as Kremlin gears up for a massive final offensive in Donbas
- A mass purge of the Russian security services has seen 150 officials removed
- Many have been arrested, with Colonel General Sergai, head of the FSB's foreign intel unit, moved to the high-security Lefortovo prison in Moscow
- The purges come ahead of a suspected military operation in Ukraine's Donbas
- Russia is thought to be planning to triple the numbers of Russian troops in the Donbas region in a desperate attempt to salvage a face-saving victory
By MARK NICHOL FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 07:45 AEST, 12 April 2022 | UPDATED: 10:37 AEST, 12 April 2022
Vladimir Putin launched a mass purge of 150 security officials last night as he prepared for a final military offensive in Ukraine.
The officers from the FSB security service – successor to the KGB – have been removed from their jobs and some have also been arrested.
The desperate Russian president is hunting for traitors after Western intelligence agents obtained his country’s battle plans before the invasion. He is also looking for others to blame after his military push fell short of a quick victory.
It emerged last night that Colonel General Sergei Beseda, head of the FSB’s foreign intelligence unit, has been moved to Moscow’s high-security Lefortovo prison after being on house arrest.
Colonel General Sergei Beseda, head of the FSB’s foreign intelligence unit, has been moved to a high security prison as it emerges that 150 security officials have been removed in a purge
Putin is said to be tightening his grip on the security services, the successor to the KGB, as he prepares for a military push into Ukraine's Donbass region in an attempt to save the campaign
Officially, the 68-year-old spy chief is being investigated for embezzlement, but it is understood the Kremlin is blaming him for leaks that have crippled Russia’s war effort.
The probe is being led by Russia’s military counter-intelligence service as Putin seeks to block the West’s information pipeline.
Other FSB officials have also been detained for supposedly ‘reporting false information to the Kremlin about the real situation in Ukraine before the invasion’, the investigative website Bellingcat reported.
They are said to have filed reports that convinced Putin Russian troops would be welcomed as liberators and that Ukrainian forces would offer scant resistance.
Russia’s military campaign has never recovered from the Kremlin’s planning assumptions being so inaccurate.
The Kremlin is understood to blame elements within the FSB for leaks which it thinks may be compromising its military efforts. The security services are also blamed for many incorrect assumptions leading to casualties in Ukraine, such as Russian troops being welcomed
FSB officials have also reportedly been detained for supposedly ‘reporting false information to the Kremlin about the real situation in Ukraine before the invasion’, said Bellingcat
Hours before Putin’s tanks rolled into Ukraine in late February, the British Ministry of Defence published maps showing where the armoured columns were heading.
Since then, UK and US intelligence officers have continued to pass accurate assessments of Russian objectives to the Ukrainians.
They have also enabled Ukraine’s lethally effective assassination programme targeting Russian army generals and senior officers. Their deaths have left their military units in disarray.
Now, with Russia facing a hugely embarrassing defeat, Putin has begun a Stalinist expulsion of those he considers responsible.
In the past seven weeks Russian forces have suffered a succession of defeats. They were also forced to withdraw from around Kyiv after failing to break through the capital city’s defences.
Only a routing of Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine can restore any military credibility to Russia’s war effort.
It emerged last night that Putin is likely to treble the numbers of Russian troops in the Donbas region in a desperate attempt to salvage a face-saving victory there.
According to Western officials, he intends to trap outnumbered Ukrainian fighters in a deadly pincer movement.
The manoeuvre requires Russian troops moving north from the besieged port city of Mariupol to join up with units pushing south from Izyum.
Last night an official said: ‘As and when Mariupol does fall, if that is what happens, Russian forces would be free to join those attacking from Izyum. Ukraine will face a pincer movement.
‘The scale of the [Russian] force is yet to be seen. But it is estimated it could be a doubling or trebling of force in Donbas.
Ukrainian soldiers are seen at a Ukrainian frontline in Donbass. It emerged on Sunday that Putin is likely to treble the numbers of Russian troops in the Donbas region in an attempt to seize the whole area before attempting peace talks
Putin intends to trap outnumbered Ukrainian fighters in a deadly pincer movement, cutting them off from the rest of the army and volunteer forces, according to Western intelligence
‘This could take some considerable time and even then there is the question of how effectively they bring those forces into the battle.
‘It is a little simplistic to think of a two to one or a three to one advantage. It is more about whether they [the Russians] bring their force to bear at the point of decision, to use their numerical advantage to bring about a decisive engagement [against the Ukrainians].
‘The fall of Mariupol has been long predicted by many, yet still the Ukrainian forces there continue to fight bravely and effectively. There has also been a humanitarian crisis there for some time.’
Western officials believe that Russian battalion tactical groups (BTGs), each with up to 1,000 troops, are heading towards Donbas to reinforce forces already stationed there.
While Moscow has lost nearly 40 BTGs in the fighting so far, as many as 90 remain committed to the Kremlin’s ‘special military operation’.
Russia already holds most of the territory in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions but the Kremlin is seeking to seize the whole area before any further peace talks.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin would not halt its march for any new discussions, accusing Kyiv of failing to reciprocate in previous sessions.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said he sees no reason not to continue with peace talks despite speculation from Western intelligence services that Russia is attempting to improve its military position in Ukraine before negotiating further
Mr Lavrov told state television that he saw no reason not to continue with talks. And although Putin had ordered a suspension of military action during a first round in February, Moscow’s position had changed, he said.
‘A decision was made that during the next rounds of talks, there would be no pause [in military action] so long as a final agreement is not reached,’ he added.
A Western official said: ‘Operations are taking place in Donbas now in a bid to force the issue. How will these redeployed forces be brought into the fight?
‘There is a tension between the military priorities of regrouping and coordinating one’s forces and the political imperative of getting things going.
‘Some degree of success [in Donbas] may be desirable after more than 40 days of failure. There is a clear intent to reinforce Russia’s presence in and around Donbas.
‘Regardless of these reinforcements, it is unclear how Russia will overcome morale issues. It was low to begin with but morale is much lower now.
‘Russian troops are becoming difficult to lead and ineffective. We have seen many are unwilling to fight.
‘There will be opportunities for Ukraine to disrupt their operations and there is a window for the UK to support Ukraine militarily and economically.’
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150 Russian officers accused of leaks as Kremlin gears up for a massive final offensive in Donbas
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