The U.K. Defense Ministry said it in its latest update.
“Recent independent Russian media reports have claimed that due to the problems Russia is facing in its war against Ukraine, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu is now being side-lined within the Russian leadership, with operational commanders briefing President Putin directly on the course of the war,” the U.K. MoD update said.
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According to the British MoD, Shoigu has likely long struggled to overcome his reputation as lacking substantive military experience, as he spent most of his career in the construction sector and the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
“Russian officers and soldiers with first-hand experience of the war probably routinely ridicule Shoigu for his ineffectual and out-of-touch leadership as Russian progress has stalled,” the ministry said.
The update added that Shoigu has probably “struggled” to overcome his reputation as not having much military experience.
As Defense Express reported, Intelligence bodies of Ukraine and Great Britain as well as American think-tanks speak of a turning point in russian-Ukrainian war, an exhaustion of russia's military capabilities to expand expansion, while Ukraine is becoming stronger.
Read more: Russia Transfers Recently Formed Third Army Corps to the Border with Ukraine - CIT
