1/ Russia's (allegedly) most incompetent general says he plans to stand for election in Tatarstan as a candidate for Vladimir Putin's United Russia party. Russian warbloggers are unimpressed at Colonel General Alexander Lapin's continued failure upward. ⬇️
2/ Lapin has repeatedly been dismissed from his positions since the start of the Ukraine war, and has attracted a great deal of criticism – likely justified – for his failures in command. Now retired, this unpopularity has not stopped him from declaring his candidacy:
3/ "At this stage in my life, I have a great desire to serve my multinational people, to defend the interests of my small homeland, to help people, to fight for truth, to fight for justice, to defend the interests of our republic and, as a whole, our great Motherland – Russia."
4/ "According to the 'Pose Panda' Telegram channel, "It was previously reported that this initiative originated with Tatarstan leader Rustam Minnikhanov, who has a long-standing friendship with Lapin, a native of Kazan."
5/ "General Lapin has commanded the troops of the Central Military District since 2017. Since the beginning of the Special Military Operation, he has repeatedly found himself at the center of high-profile scandals—as the saying goes, there's no room for reprisals.
6/ "For example, in May 2022, he commanded the crossing of the Siverskyi Donets River, which resulted in the loss of approximately 400 soldiers and up to 100 pieces of military equipment.
7/ "That same month, he publicly presented an award to his son, Lieutenant Colonel Denis Lapin, a tanker who commanded the 1st Tank Regiment, part of the Taman Division.
8/ "Under his command, tankers participated in the offensive on Sumy and Chernihiv, but retreated with heavy losses. In June of that year, the general himself was awarded the title Hero of Russia.
9/ "Lapin is also known for the fact that under his command, in September 2022, the Russian Armed Forces abandoned more than a dozen settlements in the Kharkiv region, suffering defeats, including at Izyum, Liman, and Balakliya.
10/ "Heavy fighting is currently underway for the liberation of Kupyansk and Vovchansk.
In October 2022, Lapin held a pistol to the head of a mobilized lieutenant, company commander Dmitry Vodnev. This occurred near Svatove (LPR).
11/ "General Lapin, who had arrived at the mobilised troops' location, was displeased that the officer was reluctant to commit his unprepared subordinates to battle. He held a pistol to Vodnev's temple, after which the general's guards tied Vodnev's hands and brutally beat him.
12/ "The torture didn't end there: the officer was held for some time without food at the commandant's office in Valuyki. He agreed to return to the front and carry out combat missions, but under a different commander.
13/ "Then, in late October 2022, after harshly criticizing Ramzan Kadyrov for the failures of the offensive near Liman, Lapin was dismissed as commander of the Centre Group of Forces.
14/ "For some time, little was known about the general until, in the spring of 2024, he took command of the Leningrad Military District and the Northern Group of Forces.
15/ "Incidentally, the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal named General Lapin as one of the culprits behind the Ukrainian Armed Forces' breach of the border in the Kursk region in August 2024.
16/ "However, many Russian military officials and military bloggers also accused him of the same.
17/ "Three months before the Ukrainian Armed Forces' invasion, Lapin dissolved the interdepartmental council for the defense of the Kursk region, thereby weakening border defenses, as the body he dissolved united military and security officials.
18/ "For this reason, among other things, the efforts of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces were chaotic and ineffective, allowing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to gain a foothold and engage in unrest in the Kursk region for six months.
19/ "In August 2025, Lapin was removed from his position as commander of the "North" group of forces, and in September he was dismissed from military service.
20/ "It would seem he had faded into oblivion, but no: soon, information surfaced that he had taken the position of assistant to Minnikhanov. Now it has become known that General Lapin plans to run for the State Duma from Tatarstan.
21/ "Two questions: why hasn't Lapin been held accountable for all his criminal military misdeeds that resulted in the deaths of soldiers, and why do we need him in the State Duma?
22/ "So, instead of being punished for all his failures at the front, which resulted in the loss of territory and the deaths of civilians and our servicemen,…
23/ …this absolutely incompetent military commander is now blazing a trail to the State Duma to lecture everyone on how to love the Motherland? Surreal and absurd.
24/ "After all, a victorious United Russia primary will undoubtedly be handed to him on a silver platter, and he'll get into the State Duma. Instead of serving time and felling trees. Whatever, it's unfair." /end
Sources:
🔹 t.me/panda_news_pan…
🔹 t.me/panda_news_pan…
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