VLAD’S VENGEANCE
Furious Putin ‘begins Kremlin PURGE’ amid Kursk invasion calamity with his ‘missing’ top general’s head on the block
It comes after Ukraine's troops captured the largest Russian town to fall since World War Two
A FURIOUS Vladimir Putin is set to swing the axe as Russia's Ministry of Defence wobbles amid the Ukrainian blitz.
Kremlin army chiefs are said to be in the firing line for their failure to stave off Kyiv's rampaging forces in Kursk, leading to the loss of 400 square miles of home soil.
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Former Ukrainian adviser Anton Gerashchenko claims Russian sources have indicated that "criminal cases are being prepared" for top military brass.
Sources say Vlad is seething at Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, who was strangely missing from Moscow's crunch Security Council meeting last Friday.
Gerasimov, 68, has been accused of knowing that Ukraine's invasion of Kursk was imminent - but decided not to tell Russian hierarchy.
Bloomberg reported Kremlin officials were fuming at the much-maligned army boss.
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Pro-Russia Telegram channels also seemed to note his absence from the emergency meeting as Ukraine's forces pushed deeper into Russia.
Politjoystic said: "Observe who is here and who is not."
Vlad's old pal Sergei Shoigu - who once went mushroom picking with the president - was sacked as Defence Minister in May, becoming Secretary of the Security Council in a reshuffle.
It came after one of his deputies was arrested on corruption charges.
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But he still copped an invite to Putin's panicked meeting, which also included chief security adviser Nikolay Patrushev.
Gerasimov was warned about a possible Kursk invasion as early as two weeks before it happened, according to another Russian Telegram channel.
Putin humiliated as biggest Russian town to be captured since WW2 FALLS to Ukraine with soldiers hoisting victory flag
A post said: "Gerasimov urged Abachev 'not to stir up panic' and 'not to fall for the enemy's disinformation'."
Vlad has reportedly called in his ex-bodyguard to lead the defence of Kursk in a sign of dwindling trust in those running the flailing operation.
Alexei Dyumin, 51, is now said to be coordinating the defence ministry, security agencies and regional authorities in the rush to save Russian regions from Kyiv's forces.
He is a long-time pal of Putin who once saved him from a bear.
Dyumin's standing is such that he's even been talked of as a potential presidential successor.
Meanwhile, Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko has urged Vlad to bring an end to the Ukraine war.
Speaking to Russian state television, Lukashenko said "high-ranking people of American origin" want the war to continue so Ukraine and Russia "destroy each other".
But he pleaded with mad Vlad: "Let's sit down at the negotiating table and end this brawl."
Part of Putin's 2022 invasion of Ukraine was launched from Belarus, with Lukashenko long regurgitating Moscow's anti-west war propaganda.
He has previously called on Kyiv to surrender for a ceasefire, saying Russia would be forced to use "the most terrible weapon" if it felt threatened.
The ageing tyrant even warned he could unleash nukes with pal Putin, saying "If necessary, Putin and I will decide and bring in strategic weapons."
Why has the Ukrainian invasion of Russia been so succesful
A DARING Ukrainian military push into Russia's Kursk region has become the largest attack on the country since World War Two.
Kyiv's forces have seized scores of villages, taken hundreds of prisoners and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians.
After more than a week of fighting, Russian troops are still struggling to drive out the invaders.
Why has Russian military been caught so unprepared?
A long undefended border
Russia's regions of Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod share a 720-mile border with Ukraine - including a 152-mile section in the Kursk region.
And it only had symbolic protection before Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.
It's been reinforced since then with checkpoints on key roads and field fortifications in places - but not enough to repel a Ukrainian assault.
The most capable Russian units are fighting in eastern Ukraine, leaving the border vulnerable to attack.
Element of surprise
Ukrainian troops participating in the incursion were reportedly only told about their mission a day before it began.
The secrecy contrasted with last year's counteroffensive - when Ukraine openly declared its goal of cutting the land corridor to annexed Crimea.
Ukraine ended up failing as troops trudged through Russian minefields and were pummelled by artillery and drones.
But in Kursk, Ukrainian troops didn't face any of these obstacles.
Battle-hardened units easily overwhelmed Russian border guards and small infantry units made up of inexperienced conscripts.
The Ukrainians drove deep into the region in several directions - facing little resistance and sowing chaos and panic.
Russia's slow response
The Russian military command initially relied on warplanes and choppers to try to stop the onslaught.
At least one Russian helicopter gunship was shot down and another was damaged.
Moscow began pulling in reinforcements, managing to slow Ukraine's advances - but failed to completely block troops.
In his recent interview, filmed last weekend after the Kursk invasion was launched, Lukashenko instead said: "Neither the Ukrainian people, nor the Russians, nor the Belarusians need it. They (the West) need it."
The Ukrainian ambush, launched last Tuesday, has led to the capture of huge slices of Russian territory, with President Volodymyr Zelensky claiming more than 70 towns and villages have been taken.
That figure has been estimated at closer to 50 by independent researchers, but the surge's success now also includes the trophy of the strategically important town of Sudzha.
With a prewar population of about 5,000, it's Kyiv's biggest coup so far.
It also means it is the largest Russian town to fall into foreign hands since Nazi forces invaded the country in the Second World War.
The town holds an extra layer of significance because gas from West Siberia passes through pipes in Sudzha, before flowing onto Ukraine and into Europe.
As much as half of Russian natural gas sent into Europe travelled through the town in 2023 and makes up three to five per cent of EU consumption.
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It comes after a Ukrainian news channel broadcast footage showing soldiers ripping down Russian flags from a building in Sudzha.
They were filmed shouting: "Glory to Ukraine, glory to heroes".
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