In the video, hastily filmed and distributed on all channels and social networks, you can see how the Russian General Sergey Surovikin, who was nicknamed “General Armageddon” by the Russian press for his brutality, the commander of the Air Force calls on the mercenaries of the “Wagner” PMC not to escalate. a tense situation between a group of mercenaries and the regular army of Russia.

“I have just returned by order of the Ministry of Defense from the front line, where our troops, our commanders, our soldiers, our volunteers are carrying out the assigned task, fighting to the death with the superior forces of the enemy, causing casualties. , but staying in position,” Surovikin appears to say in the seemingly hastily shot video clip, which shows the Russian general sitting awkwardly at a table with his back to a white pverete and what appears to be an automatic pistol on his right leg. .

“I am appealing to the management, command and fighters of the “Wagner” PMC: together with you, we have gone through a difficult path. Together with you we fought, took risks, suffered losses, but together we won. We are of the same blood. We are warriors.

I am asking you to stop. The enemy is waiting for the aggravation of our domestic political situation. We must not play the enemy’s game in this difficult time for the country.

It is necessary, before it is too late, to obey the will and order of the president elected by the people of the Russian Federation. Halt columns and return them to permanent positions and concentration points.

All issues should be resolved only by civilian means under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces,” Surovikin said.

Who is Surovikin nicknamed “General Armageddon”

General Serhiy Surovikin, nicknamed “General Armageddon” by the Russian press for his brutality, the Air Force commander who led Russian forces on the Ukrainian front from October to January.

Under Surovikin’s command, Russian forces launched missile strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure and withdrew from the west bank of the Dnieper, leaving Kherson, the only regional center captured since the invasion began.

Surovikin, 56, is a veteran of Tajikistan’s civil war in the 1990s, the second Chechen war in the 2000s and the Russian intervention in Syria that began in 2015.

He was personally awarded by President Vladimir Putin, Surovikin argued that the withdrawal, officially completed two days later, would allow Moscow to salvage equipment and redeploy forces – estimated by the US at 30,000 troops – for offensive operations on other fronts.