Third Russian general 'killed' in Ukraine in further blow to Putin

12 March 2022, 00:01

A third Russian general has been 'killed' within the space of eight days, Ukraine has claimed.

Major General Andrei Kolesnikov, commander of the 29th army of the eastern military district, was the latest casualty of war on Friday, according to the Ukrainian Government.

As reported by Ukraine's Interfax news agency, Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko wrote on Telegram on Friday: "The good news is that Major General Andrei Kolesnikov, Commander of the 29th Army of the Eastern Military District, became the KIA today."

His death was later confirmed by Western officials, who did not name the general but added that he was from Russia's eastern military district.

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It followed the deaths of Major General Vitaly Gerasimov, who was killed in a battle near the eastern city of Kharkiv on Tuesday, and Major General Andrei Sukhovetsky.

Gerasimov was a senior military official who participated in the second Chechen war and was awarded a medal for "capturing Crimea".

Meanwhile, reports have said that Sukhovetsky was shot and killed by a sniper near Mariupol.

He was deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of the Central Military District.

The trio were part of around 20 Russian generals thought to be involved in the invasion, which is believed to have also led to the loss of 173 tanks, 12 aircraft and 345 troop carriers.

Putin is said to have lost around 11 military commanders so far.

It comes as day 16 of the conflict also saw the besieged Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Mariupol continue to face shelling, with Russian troops having moved three miles closer to Kyiv, according to a senior US defence official.