President Vladimir Putin has fired General Sergei Surovikin, suspected of collusion with Wagner PMC mercenaries, from the post of commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, which he held before the start of the war, a well-known Russian journalist said on Tuesday, quoted by Reuters.

The information was provided by the Russian journalist, former editor-in-chief of the Echo of Moscow radio station Oleksiy Venediktov. Although his statement has not been officially confirmed by Moscow authorities, it has already been quoted by several Russian websites and Russian military bloggers.

Venediktov reported in his Telegram channel that Surovikin was dismissed from his post by official decree, without providing details.

After Yevgeny Prigozhin’s uprising of mercenaries of the “Wagner” PMK on the night of June 23-24, the general no longer appeared in public, and his arrest was also reported. However, the Kremlin systematically refuses to confirm this.

In 2017, Vladimir Putin appointed Surovikin as commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces (the Moscow name for the Air Force).

This is one of the most prestigious positions in the Armed Forces of Russia, which, in addition to the Aerospace Forces, have 5 other types of troops: Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Strategic Missile Forces, Airborne Forces and Special Forces.

The Material Support Service of the Armed Forces of Russia is also organized as a separate branch.

Serhiy Surovikin is considered one of the most capable generals in Russia

Surovikin was appointed commander of Russia’s air force after also commanding Russian forces in Syria in 2017, during which he earned the nickname “General Armageddon” for his brutal tactics. Previously, he was the commander of the Eastern Military District for 4 years.

Last October, Putin chose Surovikin as commander-in-chief of the forces invading Ukraine. But in January, Putin reshuffled the leadership of the invasion forces, appointing General Valery Gerasimov, the head of the Russian General Staff, as their commander.

The move caught Russian military bloggers and correspondents by surprise, given that Surovikin had successfully led an organized retreat from the east bank of the Dnieper in Kherson Oblast and was considered a competent general with good results.

He was also the one who ordered a massive expansion of Russian defense lines in eastern and southern Ukraine, which are now posing huge problems for the offensive launched by Ukraine in June. Despite the general’s disgrace, Russian military bloggers and some Moscow media still refer to these fortifications and minefields as the “Surovikin Line.”

In January, Surovikin was retained as Valery Gerasimov’s deputy in command of the invasion force, but his fate and possible positions he still holds in the Russian armed forces remain unknown after he disappeared from public view.

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