Serhii Kryvonos, a political and military figure, First Deputy Commander of the AFU Special Operations Forces (2016-2019), Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (2019-2020), said this on Espreso TV.
"This is a difficult question, and when you read the official reports, you want to ask: why are you lying and why did you send people whose task of fulfilling the command's order on the Tendra Spit had no strategic, operational or tactical sense. The problem is that the Special Operations Forces are led by people who, unfortunately, are completely far from the realities, starting from their service there, they did not serve in certain positions, nor did they create them, so they, you know, do not care about them, they are not their brothers, not their relatives, not their friends and not their colleagues," the military emphasizes.
Kryvonos calls for the people who sent the Ukrainian Special Forces soldiers to the Tendra Spit to be punished.
"The deaths were heroic, but the question is why? Why did we send them there? There was no need at all. I would really like to see a real tough investigation and those responsible for sending people just for the sake of some PR and photo shoots to be held severely accountable. Because with each such deed, the trust of subordinates in commanders can fall, and if there is no tough investigation, the effectiveness of the use of the Special Operations Forces will not be what they were created for. In this operation, and the one that took place, the command of the unit and the command of the Special Operations Forces must be responsible," explained the reserve major general.
According to him, the operation did not make sense from the very beginning, in particular because of logistics.
"Look at the distance between our shore and the occupied shore, I ask you a question: how will you provide the logistics of sand spit? Just look at the map, and you will realize that there was no point in holding this spit and all the questions about how to supply the people who would dig in there, what is the purpose of all this?" - Kryvonos added.
For reference. Tendra Spit is a long, narrow island spit in the northern part of the Black Sea, off the coast of Kherson region.
While performing a combat mission in a clash with the Russian occupation forces, the warriors of the 73rd Naval Special Operations Center heroically died.
"Ensuring the withdrawal of the main forces of the group after completing a special task, the warriors took their last stand forever remaining in the ranks. The heroic and extremely difficult combat work of the Special Forces units on land, at sea and in the enemy's deep rear is the daily contribution of the Special Forces soldiers to the victory over the enemy. Always remember the cost of our freedom. Eternal memory and glory to the fallen comrades! Sincere condolences to the families of the victims!" the message reads.
Before an official statement appeared, a number of Telegram channels reported that a group of soldiers from the 73rd Special Forces was killed in the Tendra Spit.