Ukraine has kept the commanders in the retreat on the front

Facing growing public pressure to address concerns about front-line military leadership as Ukrainian forces lose daily losses to Russian attacks, Ukraine says it has detained three former military commanders it blamed due to the loss of territory last spring.

Ukraine’s security services said on Monday that three former commanders — two generals and a colonel — had been charged with failing to defend the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine from advancing Russian forces in last year.

The security service, known as the SBU, did not give the names of those detained but the ranks and units they commanded at the time.

The former commanders were accused of failing to build adequate walls or build defensive positions, among other mistakes that “led to the capture of parts of eastern Ukraine, where the fighting is currently raging.” , the defense said. service said the statement.

The arrests come amid growing public pressure to protest against commanders who are seen as incompetent or careless as withdrawals from the Ukrainian Army escalate. Soldiers who leave their units without permission often cite disagreements with their commanders as the main reason for doing so.

The colonel was also responsible for the desertion of 12 soldiers from his battalion, a statement said. Separately, the commander of another brigade, the 155th, was arrested and charged with actions that led many members of his brigade to be absent without permission during the absence. the military in Ukraine.

Ukraine has also targeted corruption in the military amid widespread allegations of bribery by military officials — particularly medical commissars who can issue medical bills.

On Tuesday, the SBU announced the arrest of the country’s chief psychiatrist, saying he had amassed more than $1 million since the start of the all-out invasion of Russia, seizing property several and four BMWs.

The crimes for which the commanders were charged can carry up to 10 years in prison. The SBU said it would seek to place those arrested in pre-trial detention as a precautionary measure.

Soldiers from the 125th brigade, which was involved in the defense of the Kharkiv region at the time, said their former commander was among those arrested and was behaving in an angry manner.

“We defended the vast border, we fought to the death in the first hour of the attack. We lacked men, ammunition and support, but we fought, fought under the leadership of the commander!” they wrote on the brigade’s Facebook page.

Natalia Novosolova contributed to the report.