Yevgeny Prigozhin’s armed mutiny has exposed unprecedented cracks in the regime of Vladimir Putin—and the divide keeps widening. On Thursday, decorated Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov attempted to squash the latest controversy coming out of Moscow, only to see his efforts backfire dramatically.
On his radio show, The Full Contact, Solovyov weighed in on news that Major General Ivan Popov, who commanded Russian military units in southern Ukraine, was allegedly dismissed from his position for informing military leadership about the grim realities of Russian forces on the frontlines. In an audio message published by Russian lawmaker Andrey Gurulyov—an ever-present fixture on Solovyov’s shows—Popov complained about the deaths of Russian soldiers and the lack of Russian counter-artillery systems and reconnaissance.
Addressing the scandal, Solovyov compared Popov to Prigozhin and criticized his friend Gurulyov for disseminating the recording. “I think that publicizing his statement is a brave and phenomenally incorrect step. Popov is a respected general who had every opportunity to carry his point of view across, since he knows many people in the presidential administration very well. He could have picked up the phone and gotten his message and his point of view to the Supreme Commander, with whom he met, as I understand it.”
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Solovyov went on: “For him to make it public was an emotional step which was wrong, in my opinion. Now the Ukrainian media is happily rehashing it. Publicizing this does not make us stronger…. As a combat general, he unfortunately was excessively emotional. He recorded a strong statement, I understand him. But it shouldn’t have been made public.”
Viewers immediately barraged Solovyov with a bevy of messages—and to the host’s dismay, most of them supported Popov’s stance.
One viewer wrote: “Perhaps his leadership shouldn’t have allowed things to get that far and then remove him.” Solovyov fired back: “After something like this, you could not avoid removing him!” He added: “Every time you move on to the way of ultimatums, you are making a colossal mistake. You can’t do this! Every general understands this very well. It no longer matters who’s in the right! These methods of uncovering the truth are unacceptable in times of war... Otherwise, a comparison to Prigozhin is unavoidable!”
He hinted at cracking down against those who refuse to sugarcoat the problems, referring to “the Great Purge” by Joseph Stalin: “Do you want 1937 that preceded 1945? Is this where everything is going?”
“For me, it’s extremely sad that [Popov] succumbed to his emotions and decided to act in this manner. His questionable methods overshadow his goals. It is a big mistake! And it was a big mistake for my friend, Lt. Gen. Andrey Gurulyov, to publicize it... The country is at war! You have to be able to control your emotions!”
Apparently failing to follow his own advice, Solovyov angrily snapped back at one listener after another for supporting Popov. “Some cretin says we never declared war. Some cretin is trying to lecture me. Listen, you, cretin, get out of here! I’m responding to some idiot by the name of Andrey... I don’t care at all whether we officially declared war,” he said.
Another audience member, identifying herself as Yulia, complained that military commanders are not being allowed to tell the truth. Solovyov fired back: “Who isn’t being allowed to do it? How can you not allow a combat general to tell the truth? Why are you pouring out this nonsense? You have to shoot people at the front for lying! That’s for sure!” Solovyov proceeded to complain about the widespread media coverage of Popov’s statement: “Now it’s everywhere! In the enemy media and everywhere else, everyone is writing about this!”
Another listener, Irina, wrote that Popov did not violate any rules by recording his message. Solovyov promptly shut her down: “Yes, he did. If you don’t understand what you’re talking about, that is your problem!” He then yelled at another commentator, without specifying what he said or asked: “Andrey, you are a pathetic nobody, a cretin! Get out of here, Ukrainian swine! You are a worthless piece of shit!”
Afterwards, the host—notorious for his neurotic behavior and frequent emotional outbursts— demanded: “I call on everyone to stop and think before making any emotional statements... Anything else leads to anarchy and death!”
Solovyov then went on to read another message: “Someone by the name of ‘Stalin’ writes, ‘Shoigu created these conditions for them.’ The Defense Minister is not responsible for this! This is an issue for the General Staff. You shouldn’t use a pseudonym that in no way relates to you! You are no Stalin! You are a piece of shit! Stalin wouldn’t write this trash! Don’t defile Stalin’s name, you are a pitiful nobody! You are a pathetic piece of shit, and not Stalin!”
The host bitterly complained about the Wagnerites who are “resting,” instead of participating in the conflict alongside Russian troops, despite recently claiming that Prigozhin’s mercenary army consists of “Putin’s soldiers,” ready to carry out his every command.
Referring to another Russian general who has not appeared publicly since the coup, another commentator asked the host: “Where is Surovikin?”
“I would also like to know the answer to that question,” Solovyov responded ominously. “When the time is right, we will find out.”
