Former Russian chief commander gave 'entire Russian intelligence community' a failing grade for Ukraine attack

""Everyone, if you recall, started saying in February 2022 that the war would be over in three days. We'll beat them all now," said Chirkin in an interview on November 27 with Russian radio outlet RBC. "But unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. I would give our entire Russian intelligence community a failing grade," he added."

""To be fair, I don't intend to criticize anyone, but in my opinion, Russia was once again unprepared for war, as it had been in previous years and centuries," he said. Chirkin said that Russian leadership had been misled into thinking that 70% of Ukraine's population supported a pro-Russian government. "It turned out to be exactly the opposite. 30% for us and 70% against," he said. "During the first few weeks, we were taught a seriously cruel lesson.""

Russian forces entered the 2022 invasion with significant unpreparedness and intelligence failures. Russian intelligence misjudged Ukrainian public opinion, expecting roughly 70% support for a pro-Russian government when actual sentiment was closer to 30% pro-Russia and 70% opposed. Initial expectations of a rapid victory proved false, reflecting habitual miscalculations of the balance of power and overestimation of Russian capabilities. Early operational setbacks inflicted a harsh lesson on Russian forces. Early-stage performance was also affected by effects likened to the "Tbilisi syndrome," indicating poor planning and underestimation of enemy resolve. The intelligence apparatus received strong criticism for its role in these misjudgments.

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