2023-07-14 08:19:15
A state of uncertainty in the ranks of the generals of the Russian army
Since the leader of the “Wagner” mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, announced his rebellion once morest the military leadership of the Russian army, last month, the Russian security forces have arrested many military leaders, including General Sergei Surovikin, commander of the space forces. A Wall Street Journal report quoted people familiar with the matter as saying that Surovikin, known as the “Doomsday” general because of his role in the war in Syria, is being held in Moscow and is being interrogated.
General Sergey Surovikin has not appeared in public since the “Wagner” group rebelled last month (AP)
Other US reports also stated that a Russian military commander was dismissed from his post following he informed the military command of the deteriorating situation on the front in Ukraine, where Russian soldiers were stabbed in the back due to the failures of senior military officers, as he described it.
Although he was not charged with a crime or involvement in the mutiny, he was aware of the plot. According to these people, the Kremlin’s efforts to remove officers suspected of disloyalty are wider than is publicly known. At least 13 senior officers have been detained for questioning, some later released, and 15 suspended or fired. They added, “The arrests are regarding cleaning up the ranks of those who are believed to be no longer to be trusted.”
While neither the Kremlin nor the Russian Defense Ministry would comment on the report, Andrei Gorolyov, head of the Russian parliament’s defense committee, said in a video circulating on Russian social media this week that Sorovikin was “resting” and “unavailable at the moment.”
Sergey Surovikin with Vladimir Putin (AP)
Surovikin’s deputy, Colonel Andrei Yudin, and the deputy chief of military intelligence, Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseev, were also arrested, but were later released. One of them said that they were suspended from work and their movements restricted while they were under surveillance.
Among the other personalities who were arrested; Former Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev, who previously held the position of Deputy Minister of Defense, joined the Wagner Company in late April.
Surovikin was last seen in a video on June 23, in which he appears grim and with a gun in his right hand, imploring Prigozhin and his fighters to stop the rebellion.
Since that time, the Kremlin has proceeded to dismantle Wagner, which was a major force in the Ukrainian war, which fought a brutal war to capture the city of Bakhmut, as well as being the main instrument of Russian intervention in the Middle East and Africa. On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had begun to recover hundreds of tanks, rocket launchers and artillery pieces from Wagner, as well as 20,000 assault rifles and other small arms and 2,500 tons of ammunition.
state of uncertainty
On the other hand, a report in the New York Times said that a state of uncertainty has prevailed among Russian military leaders since the end of the Wagner rebellion. In addition to Sorovikin’s disappearance, a top general was killed in a Ukrainian air strike, a top general accused his military command of treason following being dismissed from service, and a submarine commander was shot dead while jogging.
After the Wagner rebellion, Russian President Vladimir Putin kept Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov in their posts.
In the audio message released by Andrei Gorulyov, Major General Ivan Popov, commander of the 58th Combined Arms Army, stated that he was removed from his post following he conveyed the truth to senior commanders regarding the situation on the front.
Popov said, “The Ukrainian army might not penetrate our ranks on the front, but our senior commander dealt us a sudden blow and brutally beheaded the army in the most difficult and intense moment.”
Popov, who took command of the Russian units in southern Ukraine, clearly raised the issue of killing Russian soldiers in Ukrainian artillery shelling, and said that the army lacked appropriate counter-battery systems and means of enemy artillery reconnaissance. Gorulyov is a former army major who appears regularly on state television. It is not yet clear when the audio message was recorded. The Ministry of Defense has not made any statements regarding the dismissal.
Such public criticism of the Russian military leadership from a commander with great battle experience indicates the extent of discontent within the Russian army, at a time when it is engaged in the largest land war in Europe since World War II. This came less than 3 weeks following the Wagner rebellion.
The newspaper pointed out that the coverage of the visit of General Valery Gerasimov, Chief of Staff of the Russian Army, to the Russian Aerospace Forces, and his receipt of a report from it, was by Surovikin’s deputy, Colonel Victor Avzalov. At the same time, Russia received another blow in the ranks of its major military leadership. Ukraine announced that Lieutenant General Oleg Tsukov, deputy commander of Russia’s Southern Military District, was killed in Ukraine during a missile attack Monday night on the occupied city of Berdyansk, one of Russia’s highest casualties during the war. A retired Russian lawmaker and general, Andrei Gorolyov, confirmed his death in an appearance on state television on Wednesday, saying he “died heroically.”
Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseev (right) with Prigozhin in a video clip from Rostov, and he appealed to the head of “Wagner” in a previous video clip to reconsider his actions (AFP)
Gorulyov also released a recording late Wednesday of the commander of Russia’s 8th Combined Arms Army, Maj. Gen. Ivan Popov, explaining to his troops why he was relieved of command of the unit, which is fighting near Zaporizhia. “The situation is difficult with the high command,” Popov said, which led to his dismissal following he raised problems he was suffering from on the battlefield, including the lack of anti-missile batteries and artillery reconnaissance stations, as well as the deaths and injuries suffered by his forces from the artillery fire of Ukrainian forces. .
In what appeared to be a direct swipe at Gerasimov, Popov said that while Ukrainian forces might not penetrate his unit at the front, “our senior commander struck us from behind, treacherously and despicably beheading our unit” in the most difficult and tense moment.
And Russian security forces arrested, on Wednesday, in the southern city of Krasnodar, a man they said had been recruited by Ukraine, on charges of assassinating the second captain, Stanislav Rzhetsky, the commander of a Russian submarine operating in the Black Sea that participated in the bombing of Ukraine, while he was jogging. Russian media reported that the captain was killed by 6 bullets.
1689328144
#Wagner…and #fighters #opportunity #join #army
