A Russian colonel has reportedly been killed after “stepping on a mine” while visiting soldiers on the frontline in Ukraine in another devastating blow to Vladimir Putin.
Arman Ospanov, the head of the armoured service of the Russian Airborne Forces, was said to have been in the occupied territories to boost morale.
News of Ospanov’s apparent death was shared by Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Kyiv’s internal affairs minister who cited Russian Telegram channels.
Another account on X – Russian Officers killed in Ukraine – also reported his death.
It says it gathers its information from funeral notices, obituaries, Russian news outlets, memorial plaques, and monuments.
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However, another account – Status-6 – shared reports from sources suggesting Ospanov had been visiting the 104 Guards Air Assault Division near Kozachi Laheri in Kherson Oblast on January 6 when he came under fire from Ukrainian artillery.
According to a source, the officer had been delivering spare cables to a BREM armoured recovery vehicle the group were struck by Ukraine’s forces, with the colonel “killed instantly”.
Sergeant Alexander Krasnov from the airborne division was also reported to have been killed.
On Monday a post by Russian Telegram account Airborne Forces for Honesty and Justice, which is associated with officers from the Dnepr Group of the Russian Armed Forces, appeared to confirm Ospanov died in action.
The post said: “We found out about this yesterday, but were waiting for the family to be informed. Unfortunately, our good comrade, Colonel Arman Ospanov, died at the front. He fulfilled his military duty to the last.”
“This is a huge loss for all paratroopers, since Ospanov headed the Airborne Armored Service. We will report on the circumstances of his death later, when we receive permission and know that this will not harm anyone.”
On Monday, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported that 365,170 Russian military personnel have been killed since the invasion of Ukraine began almost two years ago, though the figure has not been independently verified.
Several senior Russian military figures are thought to have been killed during Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
In November, Major General Vladimir Zavadsky, deputy commander of Russia’s 14th Army Corps, was killed.
Investigative news outlet iStories said Zavadsky was the seventh Major General confirmed by Moscow to have been killed, and the 12th senior officer to be reported dead since the outbreak of the conflict.
