Frontline report: Conflicting Russian command structures fuel friendly fire accidents in Kursk Oblast

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

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