"Not Going As Fast As We Would Like": Top Putin Ally On Ukraine Invasion
NDTV
Russia-Ukraine War: National Guard chief Viktor Zolotov's comments appeared at odds with an assessment on Friday by Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who told President Vladimir Putin that "everything is going according to plan".
One of President Vladimir Putin's closest allies said Russia's military operation in Ukraine had not all gone as quickly as the Kremlin had wanted, the strongest public acknowledgement yet from Moscow that things were not going to plan.
National Guard chief Viktor Zolotov, speaking at a church service led by Orthodox Patriarch Kirill on Sunday, blamed the slower than expected progress on what he said were far-right Ukrainian forces hiding behind civilians, an accusation repeatedly made by officials in Russia.
His comments appeared at odds with an assessment on Friday by Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu who told Putin that "everything is going according to plan".
"I would like to say that yes, not everything is going as fast as we would like," Zolotov, once in charge of Putin's personal security, said in comments posted on the National Guard's website.
