Two generals and colonel detained in case over Russia's 2024 advance in Kharkiv Oblast – photos

Officials from the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), in cooperation with the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU), have detained two former generals and a colonel on suspicion of negligence that enabled Russian forces to seize part of the territory of Kharkiv Oblast in May 2024.

Source: SBI; SSU; Ukrainska Pravda sources in law enforcement 

Quote from the SBI: "Due to their negligent attitude towards military service, the former commanders of the Kharkiv Operational and Tactical Group, the 125th Separate Territorial Defence Brigade and the 415th Separate Rifle Battalion of the 23rd Separate Mechanised Brigade allowed Russian Federation troops to seize part of the territory of the Lyptsi rural territorial hromada in the Kharkiv district [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories – ed.].

Furthermore, the commanders’ actions led to the loss of personnel and weapons and disrupted measures in defence of the state border in their area of responsibility."

Details: According to Ukrainska Pravda sources, the detainees are Brigadier General Yurii Halushkin, Lieutenant General Artur Horbenko and Colonel Illia Lapin.

As noted in the SBI report, the investigation found that the brigadier general [Halushkin] assigned defensive positions to the 125th Separate Brigade of Territorial Defence that were beyond its combat capabilities when he had other units available that could have reinforced these positions. The commander also made a number of other errors, including failing to fully specify the directions of the main Russian attacks and failing to properly supervise the organisation of the preparation and conduct of defensive actions. He failed to manoeuvre the group's assets and personnel in a timely manner, and arranged no artillery and air support for the brigade's units.

The investigation found that the lieutenant general [Horbenko] also underestimated the Russian troops' ability to continue the offensive in the brigade's defence area and responded inadequately to the Russians' increasing combat capabilities and threats. In particular, he failed to equip combat guard posts, did not take measures to staff the brigade, assigned unrealistic combat duties to the battalions, and having made no operational and tactical calculations beforehand, failed to organise proper equipment for strongholds, engineering barriers and so on.

Furthermore, the former brigade commander, despite having information about the Russians’ planned offensive, failed to pass it on to his subordinates. He did not ensure full mobilisation or ensure that all brigade personnel, including officers, were present at their positions. During the battle, he failed to organise adequate fire support for the brigade’s units from artillery, did not deploy reserves effectively, and was unaware of the actual situation on the battlefield. 

Similarly, the former commander of the 415th Separate Rifle Battalion of the 23rd Separate Mechanised Brigade [Colonel Lapin] failed to plan a defensive action in the settlements of Strilecha, Krasne, Lyptsi and Slobozhanske, all of which were inside his battalion's defence zone. He failed to identify significant facilities for establishing strongholds or to plan their defence, to counter Russian subsurface mine warfare, or to designate shelter and storage facilities.

The SBI said the officer failed to report the outcomes of the battle to his senior commander during the defence against the Russian offensive. He also took no action to prevent the unauthorised retreat of 12 battalion soldiers and issued a combat order independently, without the approval of his senior commander. Additionally, the former battalion commander ignored the brigade commander's order to recover the lost positions.

As a result of these failures, the Russians were able to advance and seize the positions of the first and second echelon battalion units. This led to significant losses in personnel, the Russians penetrating the defence line up to 10 km deep, and the loss of control over part of the territory along Ukraine’s state border.

The SSU added that specialised expert assessments conducted by law enforcement have confirmed the criminal activity of the individuals involved.

After being taken to Kyiv, the suspects will be served with notices of suspicion with respect to the negligent performance of their military duties under martial law resulting in serious consequences (Article 425.4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The former commander of the 415th Brigade will also face additional charges for desertion (Article 429 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The law enforcement agencies are also planning to petition the court for the suspects to be remanded in custody.

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