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< p _ngcontent-sc137="" class="news-annotation">On October 8, the Russian Ministry of Defense appointed General Sergei Surovikin as commander of the joint group of troops in the war in Ukraine. However, he will receive few resources to achieve his political goals.
Surovikin previously commanded the Russian Aerospace Forces, and most recently the Southern Group of Forces in Ukraine. This was reported by British intelligence.
Surovikin will face problems
According to British intelligence, during most of the “operation” Russia was probably missing one authorized field commander. General Alexander Dvornikov likely held the post during the period April to August 2022, but it is unclear whether he could effectively control the often disparate and competing factions of forces.
Surovikin's appointment likely reflects the efforts of the Russian national security community to improve the conduct of the “operation,” intelligence noted.
However, the general will likely have to compete with an increasingly factional Russian Defense Ministry with few resources to achieve political goals set for him in Ukraine.
Recall that Surovikin is one of the favorites of Vladimir Putin. In 2017, this Colonel General was appointed to the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces. He became the first combined-arms general to lead a branch of the military, which includes the air force, air and missile defense troops and space troops.
Previously, military expert Roman Svitan told Channel 24 that after the new appointment of Surovikin, Russia launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. This is Surovikin's signature style, thanks to which he took the position.
Thus, the new commander of the Russian forces is a field officer who has shown himself almost nowhere. This general does not have the necessary military mind, thanks to which he could perform tasks on the battlefield.
“The same tactics were used in Mariupol. He could not take the city, put more than 10,000 Russian troops there. After As soon as the front line was moved, our air defense moved away from the city, he pulled out the Aerospace Forces, and they “rolled out” the city, destroying more than 10 thousand civilians. He simply does not know any other tactics,” Svitan said.
