'Drunk' Russian Commander Who Sent Troops on Suicide Mission Awarded—Report

A Russian commander who is alleged to have sent troops into a deadly assault in Ukraine while intoxicated was awarded the title of Hero of Russia a month after the mission, according to an independent publication.

The ASTRA Telegram channel, a project run by independent Russian journalists, spoke to Alina Bolvinova, the widow of Mikhail Shchebetun—one of the Russian soldiers deployed as part of the mission in the key front-line town of Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine, in February.

Russia in October 2023 launched a major offensive in Avdiivka, which had been the target of Moscow's forces' aggression since 2014 when Russian President Vladimir Putin illegally annexed the southern Crimean peninsula from Ukraine.

Avdiivka, which had a prewar population of 32,000, fell to Russian forces on February 17. Kyiv said its forces had withdrawn from the town after months of fighting. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the decision was made to save the lives of his soldiers, and Russia subsequently took full control of the area, marking Moscow's biggest victory for months.

Russian Colonel Aleksey Ksenofontov "got drunk and sent dozens of mobilized and contract soldiers into a deadly assault," including Shchebetun, ASTRA reported.

Newsweek couldn't independently verify the report and has contacted Russia's Defense Ministry for comment by email.

"The last time my husband called me was on February 14, 2024... he told me in plain text that this was most likely our last conversation, since they had already been warned that as soon as they arrived at the scene [near Avdiivka], their phones would be taken away," Bolvinova told the publication.

"The commander made it clear to them that they were being taken to their deaths," she said.

Bolvinova said she learned of her husband's death on March 9. A month later, he was awarded the title of Hero of Russia, according to Kremlin propagandist and Putin ally Vladimir Solovyov, ASTRA reported.

Bolvinova appealed to Putin over Ksenofontov's conduct in battle following her husband's death.

"How long will Brigade Commander Aleksey Ksenofontov continue to abuse soldiers, torture them, and deliberately send them to their deaths?" she said.

"And do you think our army really deserves commanders like 'Orel' [Syrotyuk Andrey Ivanovich], who, according to information regularly appearing on the Internet, allows himself to cancel our soldiers who refuse to carry out his and Tiger's criminal orders, or a commander like the current Acting Commander of the military unit 29760 Averin D.S. who is not capable of making strong-willed decisions and taking responsibility ... ?" Bolvinova said in her appeal to the Russian president.

In February, Andrei Morozov, a Russian soldier and military blogger, was reported by his lawyer to have died by suicide shortly after revealing the scale of Moscow's troop losses in the fight for Avdiivka.

Russia's former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had said that Moscow sustained "minimal losses" in the fight for Avdiivka.

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