Sacked Russian General Returns To War Front — In Command Of Penal Battalion

 

Major General Ivan Popov, once celebrated for his leadership in southern Ukraine and later sacked for criticizing Russia’s military command, is reportedly returning to the frontlines — this time, in charge of a notorious penal unit comprised of ex-prisoners.

Popov’s reinstatement follows a turbulent two-year fall from grace. In 2023, while commanding the 58th Combined Arms Army, he sent a voice note to fellow officers sharply criticizing the Defense Ministry’s failures. He accused senior commanders — particularly Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov — of sidelining him for raising concerns over poor artillery support and operational setbacks.

“Our senior commander hit us from the rear, treacherously and vilely decapitating the army,” Popov said at the time.

His ousting sparked outrage among Russian ultranationalists, veterans, and military bloggers, many of whom saw him as a truth-teller punished for exposing internal dysfunction. Soon after, Popov was reassigned to Syria and later arrested in Russia on embezzlement charges — charges he has consistently denied. Prosecutors had sought a six-year prison sentence and he was discharged from the military.

Despite this, support for Popov persisted, and he eventually penned a public appeal to President Vladimir Putin, asking to return to combat duty. Describing Putin as a “moral guide,” he praised the president’s leadership and expressed a desire to redeem himself on the battlefield.

That request has now been granted — with conditions.

According to Russian state media, Popov will be deployed not to his former post, but as commander of a Storm Z unit — a penal battalion made up largely of former prisoners. These units have earned a grim reputation for suffering extraordinary casualties during frontal assaults in Ukraine.

Analysts like Kateryna Stepanenko from the Institute for the Study of War describe Popov’s reassignment as effectively a death sentence. “Storm Z” detachments, she says, are frequently used in high-risk operations with little regard for survival, often referred to as “meat grinder assaults.”

Popov has prior connections to such forces. While leading the 58th Army, he was linked to a Storm Z subgroup known as “Storm Gladiator,” composed of convicts with military experience. That unit, trained by ex-Wagner fighters and Chechen special forces, reportedly had a survival rate as low as 40%.

The agreement allowing Popov’s return — brokered between his lawyer and the Russian Ministry of Defense — may still need military court approval. His lawyer confirmed that a motion was filed to suspend the legal case in exchange for deployment to the “Special Military Operation,” Russia’s official term for its invasion of Ukraine.

Kremlin officials, including spokesman Dmitry Peskov, have declined to comment on Popov’s situation. However, President Putin has signaled continued support for using convicts in military roles and has pledged to grant them veteran status.

Analysts suggest Popov’s case reflects a broader Kremlin strategy: offering fallen officials a path to redemption through combat. In this system, public repentance and a willingness to serve on the front lines may outweigh past allegations.

Whether Popov’s return marks a personal comeback or a final sacrifice remains to be seen — but his future, and that of the men under his command, now lies in one of the deadliest theaters of Russia’s war effort.