20 August 2024. Today there are a lot of updates from the Kursk direction.
Here, as the Ukrainian offensive continued to penetrate deeper into Russian territory, the Russian high command scrambled to fill the gaps with a patchwork of disjointed units. The resulting chaos within the Russian ranks, compounded by a breakdown in communication between these fragmented forces, led to a series of disastrous incidents, allowing Ukrainian forces to capitalize on this disarray, further accelerating their advance.
The inception of the problem occurred when Russian officials reacted to the Ukrainian incursion by declaring a counterterrorist operation in the region under the leadership of the Russian Federal Security Service. This decision directly conflicted with the fact that the Kursk region was already part of the responsibility area of the Northern Grouping of Forces which is led by the Russian Ministry of Defense. This disjointed command structure, involving several decision-making centers, has immediately led to friction and inefficiency.
On top of that, the hastily assembled and under-strength units that Russians scrambled from various fronts and military groupings had no communication with each other, and this lack of coordination caused operation breakdowns, chaos, and disorganization. This problem has amplified the already weak Russian defense in the area, allowing the Ukrainian forces to take advantage of these problems and make significant gains. Even more, this complicated and bureaucratic command structure has reduced the overall combat effectiveness of the Russian armed forces and caused a serious record of deadly mistakes.
The moment Russian Ka-52 helicopter was shot down from MANPADS in the Kursk region. By the 82nd Brigade of Ukraine.https://t.co/0UTngVVskb https://t.co/ms1SnrlE3X pic.twitter.com/y7mToz9cAE
— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) August 17, 2024
One of the earliest and most telling examples of the command-and-control failures within the Russian military is illustrated by a video published by Russian military bloggers. The footage was intended to showcase a Russian Ka-52M attack helicopter successfully engaging a column of armored and transport vehicles, which propagandists claimed to be Ukrainian. However, the narrative quickly unraveled, revealing a major blunder and highlighting the severe communication issues plaguing the Russian army.
https://twitter.com/warrior_na92602/status/1824574301733007484/
Ukrainian drone operators soon released their own footage, proving that the targeted column was, in fact, Russian.
The helicopter pilots had unknowingly destroyed their own troops and equipment. Subsequent images of the aftermath emerged, showing the charred remains of Kamaz and Ural trucks, as well as an MSTA-S self-propelled howitzer.
A Russian Ka-52 helicopter destroyed one Russian self-propelled gun and damaged another in Kursk oblast, believing those were a Ukrainian saboteur group (yep, saboteurs with heavy howitzers). https://t.co/gpodmDgQHL pic.twitter.com/dWS6QlyuWj
— English Luhansk (@loogunda) August 12, 2024
In a shocking twist, the Russian pilot responsible for the attack was later punished by his commanders, who removed him from his position and transferred him to an infantry regiment to fight as a regular soldier. This decision, as reported by Russian military bloggers, was met with outrage, as the punishment is similar to a death sentence and will further weaken Russian aviation forces in the region, which have already suffered significant losses due to Ukrainian anti-aircraft measures. A similar incident unfolded just days later near Korenevo, where yet another Russian armored column was mistakenly struck by their forces. The attack was initially celebrated as a successful hit against Ukrainian troops, with Russian bloggers quickly boasting about it. However, perhaps learning from previous mistakes, they were more cautious this time. Although they rushed to declare victory, they deliberately avoided releasing any video footage, recognizing that the event was another tragic and humiliating misfire for them.
The challenges facing Russian aviation soon escalated further, highlighted by the next geolocated video broadcast by a major Russian TV station. Correspondents had been sent to cover defense preparations in the town of Lgov, but while filming on one of the streets, a massive explosion suddenly rocked the area, forcing them to scramble for cover.
The reporters later returned to the scene of the blast, speculating that the city had come under attack from Ukrainian HIMARS-launched missiles.
Some Russian clown in Lgov claims this crater was left behind by a downed "HIMARS" – looks more like an S-300/400 missile successfully hit the ground pic.twitter.com/UZAr2aiCfj
— English Luhansk (@loogunda) August 15, 2024
However, military analysts later debunked this claim, confirming that the explosion was yet another mistake by Russian air forces in the region. The blast was caused by an aviation bomb accidentally dropped by a Su-34 combat jet, further underscoring the ongoing issues within Russia’s air operations. All uncensored footage of Russians assaulting their own forces can be found on Reporting From Ukraine’s Telegram channel.
The disorganized nature of the Russian approach to prevent further Ukrainian advance in the region and the mix-up of different units didn’t limit itself only to blunders involving the air force. Prominent Russian sources stated that this massive lack of communication leads to soldiers often not knowing which units are operating on their flanks or if they are even still there.
This can be perfectly seen in a bizarre video published by Ukrainian drone operators. It shows a Russian unit managing to capture several Ukrainian soldiers, thinking to be supported by other Russian forces around them, only to find out minutes later that the surrounding forces are also Ukrainian which quickly led to the captors becoming captured themselves.
The next footage reveals an even grimmer fate for Russian soldiers, who were not captured this time but were instead recklessly ordered by their commanders to advance through a minefield without any warning or guidance. The horrifying video, recorded by a soldier who tragically stepped on a mine, starkly illustrates the self-destructive chaos tormenting Russian defense operations in the Kursk region.
This disturbing incident underscores the profound disarray and disregard for soldier safety that has come to define the Russian military’s faltering efforts in the area. Overall, due to the steady advance of the Ukrainians in the last few days, Russian high-ranking commanders have panicky attempted to halt the offensive without success. Various reports and geolocated footage from the Kursk region give a clear picture of how their chaotic moves have even helped the Ukrainians and led to friendly fire, destroying some of the sparse Russian personnel and equipment.
This leads not only to significant losses on the battlefield but also to even more public problems for the Kremlin as Russian officials struggle to find a solution and control the narrative which becomes more critical with every single day.
In our daily frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.
