Did the Russian Army Suffer Heavy Losses Due to Muradov? What the 155th Brigade's Letter Reveals

American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) analysts note in their latest report that the situation for the Russian army near the Ukrainian village of Pavlovka is dire, evidenced by the unrestrained criticism from Russian military bloggers aimed at the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Recently, bloggers published a letter from the Russian Armed Forces' 155th Brigade, in which soldiers complained about their command, which sent them into a blind assault in Pavlovka. The marines wrote that they were thrown into an “unexplainable offensive” by General Muradov and his compatriot Akhmedov, presumably in order for Muradov to earn bonuses before Gerasimov. They reported that over four days, they lost “about 300 killed, wounded, and missing.”

It is noteworthy that Muradov, the former commander of the Russian contingent in Artsakh, has been appointed commander of Russia’s Eastern Military District and oversees the Russian army’s Eastern grouping in Ukraine. The significant defeat of the Russian army near Pavlovka in the Donetsk region has received widespread attention in Russia.

According to International French Radio, the letter states that just the 155th Marine Brigade from Kamchatka has lost approximately 300 killed, wounded, and missing, as well as half of their equipment during the “inexplicable offensive” on the village of Pavlovka in the Donetsk region. The authors of the letter blame military leaders for mediocrity and for planning military operations in pursuit of awards. The text mentions the names of two generals whom the authors accuse of particularly heavy losses among the soldiers—“General Muradov and his compatriot Akhmedov.”

Earlier, it was reported on social media that the marines of the 155th Brigade of the Pacific Fleet were looking to record a message to the coastal governor Kozhemyako. The message referred to the large losses during battles in the Pavlovka region of the Donetsk People's Republic. In this regard, the marines requested the Primorye leader to contact the Russian Ministry of Defense to rectify the situation.