Aleksandr Lapin
Colonel General Aleksandr Lapin commanded Russia's Central Military District forces deployed to Ukraine in 2022. He was publicly humiliated by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and separately blamed by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov for the Russian defeats at Lyman and in Kharkiv Oblast in September–October 2022. He was relieved of his Ukraine command in October 2022, though retained as Chief of Staff of Ground Forces briefly.
Key Operations
- —Central Military District command in Ukraine (2022)
- —Operations in Kharkiv Oblast direction
- —Loss of Izium and Lyman (Sep–Oct 2022)
Notable
Lapin became one of the most publicly criticized Russian commanders when Prigozhin accused him of abandoning Lyman without preparing defensive positions and of sending soldiers into battle without ammunition. Kadyrov called him one of the "scapegoats" of Russia's military failures and said he should be demoted. After his dismissal from Ukraine, Lapin was assigned to command forces in the North Caucasus. His fate exemplified the internal Russian military friction that escalated throughout 2022–2023.