Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu would be “happy” to lose his job following a series of disastrous Russian defeats in Ukraine, according to The Guardian.
Shoigu, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s close best friend, is the target of anger over Russia’s military’s poor performance, The Guardian reported. The Kremlin is tempted to scapegoat him and fire him, according to the newspaper.
But Shoigu would welcome the resignation, a former Russian defense official told the Guardian.
“Knowing Shoigu, I would actually be satisfied with being fired now,” the anonymous source said. “He needs to get out of this mess. “
The former defense official added that Shoigu did not make the recent “annexations” of occupied Ukrainian territory. He also noted that firing Shoigu would be seen as an embarrassment for Putin, according to The Guardian.
“Even if Shoigu is not happy with what is happening, he will be unwavering with Putin and do his job,” the source said. “Putin knows he can accept it as true with him completely. “
Russia has suffered a series of setbacks in its crusade to take over Ukraine, Insider’s Tom Porter reported.
Ukrainian forces recently pushed back thousands of square kilometers of territory in eastern Ukraine to the Russian military. Russia suffered one of its most humiliating defeats when Ukraine liberated Lyman, a key strategic city in the east of the country, last week.
According to the Washington Post, a Kremlin member recently confronted Putin over Russia’s shortcomings in the failed invasion of Ukraine. Citing a US intelligence report, The Post said the individual had expressed to Putin his considerations about the mismanagement of the war and the mistakes made by the Russian military. Leaders