Lev Stupnikov, 26, says Putin destroyed freedom in Russia.
A Russian officer helped kill hundreds of Russian soldiers in a humiliating blow to Vladimir Putin (Image: Getty)
A Russian army officer has helped Ukraine kill over 300 of Vladimir Putin‘s soldiers after becoming disillusioned with his country’s military. Lieutenant Lev Stupnikov, 26, shared the location of infrantrymen, medics, officers and officials in one attack Ukraine carried out with his help. He had shared information about the group which was gathered near the city of Vuhledar preparing for an offensive. Stupnikov provided the Ukrainians with the exact location and secretly took a photo he sent to Ukrainian intelligence.
His contact told him in a message to “walk away”, then in another text said, “I’m waiting for a message that you’ve left”, before sending a third which read: “LEAVE”. Stupnikov told the Wall Street Journal he pretended to need the loo and disappeared among some trees, crouching down as if to relieve himself.
Seconds later he was knocked over by the force of an explosion as Ukraine fired missiles at the group. Asked by the Ukrainians in the immediate aftermath to send a photo, Stupnikov texted back: “There’s just meat.”
In that attack, the lieutenant reported 68 killed and 60 wounded, including 10 officers among the dead. A top target for Ukraine, Colonel Gusein Musayev, who was commander of the 36th Motorised Rifle Brigade, was a top target also killed in the attack.
Stupnikov is one of thousands of Russians who have deserted since Russia launched its illegal war against Ukraine. A UN report published in September last year said 50,000 had done so, representing almost 10% of the Russian troops deployed to Ukraine.
Some 16,000 were prosecuted for offences connected to desertion. The report said people who refuse to fight are tortured, with “beatings, starvation and death threats”.
Russian officer Lev Stupnikov passed information to the Ukrainian Defence Forces (Image: Kanal13/YouTube)
Stupnikov’s mother, Tatiana, who was opposed to Putin’s rule, helped to enable his betrayal as well as his disenchantment with the army, including the state of some of the Soviet-era vehicles used during training. When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Stupnikov was appalled at how innocent civilians were being targeted with bombs.
When Tatiana found out her son was being sent to war, she encouraged him to leave Russia, but he didn’t. In February 2024, she wrote to Dmytro Karpenko, who was working with Ukraine’s military intelligence, asking for him to help her son desert.
Stupnikov agreed to work with Karpenko, leading to a series of acts of sabotage against Russia. He told the Wall Street Journal “it was constant, endless tension”.
Eventually, Stupnikov made a daring escape to Ukraine across the frontline. He was later joined by his mum and 16-year-old sister.
Reflecting on what he did, Stupnikov said: “Did I betray my oath? I pledged to defend freedom, independence and the constitutional order. But Putin destroyed all three.”
Children of RNLI volunteers bullied over charity’s migrant rescues in English Channel
RNLI crews have faced years of abuse for the charity’s role in rescuing migrants crossing the Channel.
Migrants wait to disembark from RNLI vessel in Ramsgate (Image: Getty)
Children of volunteers for the RNLI have reportedly been bullied at school over the charity’s work in the English Channel. The RNLI responds to small boats that are generally in distress and require specialist rescue skills.
The leader of a lifeboat crew in Portsmouth said the children of two crew members had been bullied by their peers over their fathers’ volunteer work. The volunteers have also been confronted while shopping and socialising in public, according to a report by the Times.
RNLI crews have faced years of abuse for the charity’s role in rescuing migrants crossing the Channel.
In one instance, a lifeboat crew was trapped inside its boathouse for two hours during a protest at Eastney harbour. Volunteers from other RNLI stations were tasked with ensuring the safety of anti-migrant protesters who entered the sea during the protest.
Images of the crews’ faces were shared online, alongside calls to identify them. One widely shared post on X urged people to “get their family”.
Callouts for small boats in distress while crossing the Channel constitute only 1.7 per cent of the charity’s total, however. In 2025, 41,472 people crossed the Channel, but only 2,353, or 5.7 per cent, were rescued by the RNLI.
Police stand outside the RNLI station in Poole (Image: Getty)
According to the Times report, Peter Sparkes, the charity’s chief executive, said there had been “deliberate misinformation and a misunderstanding” about RNLI tasking and how it responded in the Channel.
“Sadly, as a result, some of our volunteers and staff have been the subject of online and, in the worst cases, physical abuse,” he said.
“The RNLI’s people represent the very best in our society, they selflessly give up their time to keep others safe.
“Yet they and their families are being threatened by those who would hide behind a balaclava or a keyboard.
“Their action, in contrast, is wholly unacceptable in a civilised society.”
Britons warned of huge ‘new tax’ if UK rejoins EU – ‘billions back to Brussels’
A push to reverse Brexit is gaining momentum, but it comes at a high cost.
Andy Burnham is preparing for a UK-EU summit next month (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain will have to make radically greater payments into the European Union if the country rejoins with the bill potentially hitting £41billion, according to a eurosceptic think tank. The Bow Group has calculated the UK gross contribution could range from £28billion to £41billion – much more than the £14.4billion paid in 2019. This is based on the assumption there is no possibility the EU would agree to restore the permanent “rebate” negotiated by Margaret Thatcher.
Her former aide Lord Redwood, warned: “The UK would need to impose a large new tax; we cannot afford to go in. We would worry markets more with yet more borrowing. The last thing we need is yet more spending and laws from Brussels.”
According to the House of Commons Library, in 2016 – the year Britons voted to leave the EU – the UK made a gross contribution to the EU Budget of £13.1billion and a net contribution of £9.6billion.
Ben Harris-Quinney, who chairs the Bow Group, said: “Despite promises to accept Brexit the Labour party now seems to be set on the path of quietly taking Britain back into the EU. It’s important that the British public understands that doing so would be far more costly than our previous membership, to say nothing of a likely requirement to join the euro, far greater regulation, and further decades of uncontrolled borders.”
Eurosceptics argue the EU wants the UK to return to boost the finances of the bloc. When Czech PM Andrej Babis was asked if would support the return of Britain to the EU, he said: “Yes of course. We need more money.”
Conservative shadow foreign minister Wendy Morton pointed to his words, saying: “Andy Burnham can’t find the cash to fund our defence, yet he seems comfortable with the idea of handing over billions to Brussels. Instead of trying to turn back the clock to 2016, he should focus on a plan for taking the country forward.”
David Campbell Bannerman fiercely opposes EU re-entry (Image: Paul Marriott)
A Reform UK spokesman warned: “Andy Burnham’s plan to reopen the divisions of the Brexit debate will not only betray the 17.4 million people who voted for Brexit, but will also cost this country dearly. Shackling us to a crumbling bloc whose share of the global economy is rapidly declining will be an economic disaster for Britain, forcing us to become a rule-taker yet again and threatening £164billion worth of post-Brexit trade agreements.”
However, a spokesperson for the pro-EU group Best for Britain said it was “unlikely” the UK could not get “some for of rebate”, adding: “It isn’t an accurate calculation of the cost to the taxpayer, and ignores the £92billion GDP growth to our economy that will be gained from EU membership. A gross calculation of what the UK might have to pay as an EU member is like submitting a tax return without any business expenses, or claiming that your turnover is net profit. But voters facing increased living costs, and businesses swamped by red tape, will be relieved to hear that pro-Brexit voices are finally taking the prospect of UK membership of the EU seriously.”
David Campbell Bannerman, a former MEP who served as deputy leader of UKIP insisted that EU re-entry was “totally unaffordable”. He said: “We would be mad to rejoin and anyone trying to rejoin should be prosecuted for misconduct in public office.”
A Government spokesperson said: “These figures are completely speculative. We are building an ambitious, close relationship with the EU that will strengthen our economy and create more opportunities for young people and communities across the whole UK.”