Russia has eight times fewer troops in Kharkiv than Ukraine: official

A senior Russian official said the Ukrainian army outnumbered Russian and pro-Russian forces eight times in the last week after Kiev’s broad offensive from the east.

“Talking about the forces that were transferred to the counteroffensive of the Ukrainian army, it outnumbered our troops by about eight times, no less,” Vitaly Ganchev, the highest Russian-backed official in the northeastern Kharkiv region, told Russia 24 broadcaster this week. Monday (12).

The information was reported by Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

Ganchev echoed other Russian officials in trying to present Moscow’s withdrawal as a decision to regroup further from the front lines.

“So, to preserve our people, I think it was decided to withdraw, regroup,” he added.

THE CNN cannot independently verify Ganchev’s claims.

Russia’s recent collapse in the northeast Kharkiv region has been met with harsh criticism from Kremlin supporters – and has raised the question of how Moscow will respond to its failure.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who provided thousands of fighters for the offensive, said “mistakes were made” in a Telegram post on Sunday. Kadyrov added that he would contact senior Defense Ministry officials to explain his message.

Kholmogorov, a blogger and staunch supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, also joined the chorus of criticism leveled at Moscow.

They reposted an equally scathing account by the Partizan Telegram channel from the front lines.

“The soldiers were on foot with a machine gun and a bag. Abandoned by the command, not knowing the way, they walked at random,” the post read.

“Sir, save the Russian soldiers from blows from the front and even more from blows from the back.”