Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed General Sergei Surowykin to lead Russia’s military operations in Ukraine, but the Russian army has encountered a series of military setbacks in Ukraine, and Russia’s domestic dissatisfaction with the military operation is also growing.
The appointment, announced Saturday, follows the dismissal of two top Russian military commanders and comes as Kyiv retakes parts of Russia-occupied territory in northeastern and southern Ukraine. At the same time, Moscow suffered a major blow following the partial destruction of the Crimean Bridge. It should be pointed out that the Crimea Bridge is a key bridge between Russia and the Crimea peninsula on the Kerch Strait, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Introduction to Surowikin
Sergei Surovkin, born in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk in 1966, was announced in June as head of Russia’s southern military bloc during the military operation against Ukraine.
He has been awarded the title “Hero of Russia” and was awarded a medal for his service in Syria in 2017, when he led a Russian military expedition as commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces.
According to a report released by the Jamestown Foundation, a U.S. defense policy think tank, Surowykin has a reputation for being “ruthless” in the Russian military.
“After 2008, during a period of radical military reforms that demanded ruthlessness, Surowikin enjoyed a illustrious career at the highest echelons of the General Staff and the Ministry of Defense,” the report said. It added that he ” Always ready to aggressively execute any order and defeat any potential questioning of his tortuous resume.”
Surowikin was jailed twice. He was imprisoned for six months after the first, in the August 1991 coup before the collapse of the Soviet Union, after soldiers under his command killed three demonstrators in the Russian capital, Moscow. He was later released without trial. Four years later, he was convicted of illegal arms dealing, a charge that was later overturned.
“Most capable”
The officer is accused of overseeing a brutal bombing that devastated much of the Syrian city of Aleppo, where Russia helped Bashar al-Assad’s regime intervene militarily. In a report published in October 2020, Human Rights Watch listed Surowikin as one of the military officials “likely to have command responsibility for violations” in the 2019-20 offensive against Syria’s Idlib province one.
Which powers control the different regions of Ukraine?
According to the Institute for War Studies, the massive explosion severely damaged the Crimean bridge linking the Crimean peninsula with Russia. Meanwhile, Russian troops continue to build defensive positions north of Kherson (Al Jazeera)
In a rare public comment, the “Live24” news agency quoted Yevgeny Prigozin as “a legend”, adding that “Surowykin is the most capable of the Russian army. commander”. It should be noted that Prigozin was the founder of the Wagnerian mercenary group that deployed a large number of members in Syria.
“A series of fiasco”
Russia has been reorganizing its forces in Ukraine in an attempt to contain the damage caused by a violent Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Some observers see Surowykin’s appointment as a sign that Russia will focus its war effort on one region.
“This place could be Luhansk, it could be Donetsk, it could be in the south,” said Alexander Votravers of the Swiss Military Review. “What we’re seeing is a contraction in Russian military operations. “
In early September, Ukraine launched a counteroffensive and drove Russian troops out of much of northeastern Kharkiv. A counteroffensive by the Ukrainian army has allowed Kyiv to retake thousands of square kilometers of territory.
Russian troops also lost parts of the southern Kherson region and the Lehman transport hub in eastern Ukraine.
A Kremlin-backed official in the Kherson region announced on the 8th that some civilians would be evacuated from the southern province.
The official, Kirill Stremusov, told RIA Novosti that young children and their parents, as well as the elderly, may be relocated to two regions in southern Russia because of expected relocation. Kherson will face a “difficult time”.
Moscow reported on the 7th that the Russian army occupied the East Donetsk region, which is the first time the Russian army has claimed victory since the success of the counter-offensive in Kyiv. It is reported that the counter-offensive operation disrupted Moscow’s military operations.
Donetsk, which has been under the partial control of Kremlin-backed separatists for years, is an important trophy for the Russian army. Russian troops launched what they called a “special military operation” against Ukraine on February 24 this year.