Russian nationalists rage after stunning setback in Ukraine

In this handout photo, 11 September 2022, you can see the Ukrainian Armed Forces' abandoned armoured fighting vehicles during a counteroffensive operation. This was in response to Russia's attack in Ukraine.

Russian nationalists called on Sunday (11 September) angrily to President Vladimir Putin, asking him to immediately make changes to secure victory in the Ukraine conflict. This was just a day after Moscow had to abandon its main base in northeastern Ukraine.

Russia suffered its worst military defeat since March, when it was forced to withdraw troops from Kyiv.

On Saturday (10 September), Russian forces left town after town. Putin opened Europe's largest ferris-wheel in a Moscow park. Meanwhile, fireworks lit up Red Square to celebrate its founding in 1147.

In a voice message of 11 minutes posted to Telegram, Ramzan Kadyrov (Chech leader and ally of Putin, whose troops were at the forefront in the campaign against Ukraine), dismissed the loss Izium as a crucial supply hub.

He admitted that the campaign wasn't going according to plan.

Kadyrov said: "If there are no changes in the conduct or the management of the special military operations, I will have to go to the leadership of the country to explain the situation on ground."

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Some pro-war commentators and Russian nationalists online were angered by Moscow's nearly complete silence about the defeat.

The Russian defense ministry posted footage on Friday (9 September) of troops sent to Kharkiv as the defeats progressed.

The defence ministry reported that Russian forces had attacked Ukrainian positions in the area with airborne troops and missiles, as well as artillery.

MOSCOW IS SILENT

As of Sunday midday, neither Putin, Russia's supreme commander in chief of the armed forces and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had made any public comments on the defeat.

According to a Kremlin transcript, Putin said that Moscow was a source of pride and that he loved the city.

Putin described his shock at being told by a KGB spy in East Germany, "Moscow's silent" when the Berlin Wall fell. He said that those who died in the Ukraine operation had sacrificed their lives for Russia.

A request for comment was not received by the defense ministry.

"They're taking it out," said Rybar, a prominent pro-war military blogger who posts on Telegram under the pseudonym Rybar.

"It is not the right time to be silent and do nothing... This seriously harms the cause."

The ministry announced on Saturday a "regrouping" to move troops from Kharkiv and focus on Donetsk in the east of Ukraine. This statement drew more anger from many Russian military blogger.

Telegram's pro-Kremlin war correspondents, former and current servicemen, have gathered large followings accusing the ministry of minimising defeat.

DEFEAT?

Igor Girkin is a militant nationalist and former FSB officer. He helped to launch a 2014 war against Ukraine's eastern Donbas.

The rapid advance of thousands of Russian soldiers, leaving behind ammunition stockpiles, and equipment, has been hailed by Ukraine as a turning point during the 6-month-old war.

Girkin has repeatedly said that Russia will defeat Ukraine if it does not declare a nationwide mobilization.

The Kremlin may be facing greater problems from nationalist anger over military failure than pro-Western liberal criticisms of Putin. However, opinion polls continue showing broad support for Moscow's "special military operation".

Moscow Day was celebrated in the capital with street parties and concerts on Saturday. Disquiet spread even to Russia's normally subservient parliament.

Sergei Mironov (leader of the Putin-loyal Just Russia Party, nominally opposed to Putin) stated on Twitter that a display of fireworks in honor of the holiday should be cancelled due to the military situation.

Telegram's prominent war correspondent Semyon Pergov posted a message that referred to the Moscow celebrations as "blasphemous" while referring to the refusal by Russian authorities to enter full-scale war as "schizophrenic".

It stated that Russia would either become its own political elite through the birth of new ones, or cease to exist.