the Russian army

Yesterday, Wednesday, the Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, appointed the Chief of Staff of the Russian Army, General Valery Gerasimov (67 years), as commander of what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine.

This appointment is the largest of its kind announced by the Russian Ministry of Defense, and comes in parallel with a bloody war raging in eastern Ukraine, especially over The Solidar-Bakhmut axis, the “slaughterhouse” of the two armies Reports said.

Gerasimov will succeed General Sergey Surovikin, who was appointed to his position on October 8, 2022, that is, only a few months ago.

For Surovikin, except for the missile strike on Makeyevka in the Donbass that claimed the lives of dozens of Russian soldiers, and the planned withdrawal from Kherson, it can be said that the time he spent as commander of military operations in Ukraine was not enough to truly evaluate him. However, there are those who say that he has not succeeded in making any progress on the front lines.

Critics

Hard-line nationalist and pro-Kremlin bloggers have severely criticized General Gerasimov, as the Russian army was unable to achieve a landslide victory over its smaller Ukrainian neighbor, even though they see Russia as a great power, and despite the passage of 15 years of arming and renewing the army with very high budgets relative to Russia’s GDP. .

Since the beginning of the war in late February, Western and Russian experts have criticized the Russian army, saying that it has shown naivety, is poorly prepared and equipped, slow to respond, distracted by distant command structures and often lacks good coordination.

After the first partial mobilization campaign announced by Vladimir Putin in late September, news spread that Gerasimov would be removed from office.

Gerasimov criticized two Russian officials who had an active and prominent role in the war: the first, Ramzan Kadyrov, the president of the Chechen Republic, and the second, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner paramilitary group.

However, supporters of the Russian military establishment say that the army’s poor performance in the first weeks and months of the war has improved a lot, especially in terms of coordination between units and armies and securing logistical supplies.

What does Gerasimov’s appointment to the battlefield mean?

Officially, the Defense Ministry said Gerasimov’s appointment was primarily due to “an increase in the tasks to be accomplished and the need for closer interaction between the components of the army.” As is known, the new appointments reduced the role of General Surovikin, to Gerasimov’s deputy.

Igor Korotchenko, one of the Russian military experts who appears almost constantly on the screen of Russian channels, says that the new appointments may stem from Putin’s conviction that the West will supply Ukraine with new offensive weapons (the West has refrained from providing Ukraine with them until now), including tanks. .

Korotchenko adds that the appointment of Gerasimov, the chief of staff of the Russian army, as commander of military operations in Ukraine means that Russia is ready to use all the weapons it has in war, including nuclear weapons.

What about politics?

• externally: Putin is sending messages to the West and NATO that he is determined to win in Ukraine by appointing Gerasimov, he is in a way raising the bar.
• internally: Putin confirms his support for the position of the Russian army at the expense of the militias of Prigozhin (Wagner) and Kadyrov (Akhmat), especially since The struggle of wings seemed clear in the recent period in the corridors of the Kremlin.
• In addition to the external and internal messages, the appointment of Gerasimov as commander of operations in Ukraine makes him more accountable. This is indicated by the famous Russian war correspondent Semyon Pegov (WarGonzo), who says that the General Staff “is now in charge of absolutely everything.”

In her attempt to understand what is going on, Russian journalist Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of the independent R.Politiks website, says that the appointment surprised everyone without exception, but it certainly does not constitute a “promotion for Gerasimov.”

Stanovaya adds that Putin’s decision is just a maneuver between two conflicting parties, Surovikin and his supporters such as Prigozhin on the one hand, and on the other hand, Gerasimov and the Russian Ministry of Defense represented by Minister Sergei Shoigu.

The journalist concludes by saying that Putin shuffled the cards of the game, even though he is not primarily a military man. And she adds, “Putin, therefore, gives opportunities to those whom he deems convincing.” Today, Gerasimov turns out to be convincing. Tomorrow it could be anyone else.”

Who is Valery Gerasimov?

Putin appointed Gerasimov chief of the general staff and deputy defense minister on November 9, 2012, three days after Putin’s ally Sergei Shoigu was appointed defense minister.

Each of these three men carries one of three nuclear bags called “chigit” in Russian. [Cheget]could order a Russian nuclear strike.

Gerasimov played key roles in Russia’s seizure of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and in the game-changing Russian military support for President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian civil war.

The US State Department imposed sanctions on him the day after the invasion of Ukraine, saying he was one of three senior Russians besides Putin who were directly responsible for the war. Nevertheless, Gerasimov occasionally communicates with General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Gerasimov was born on September 8, 1955 in Kazan and rose in the ranks of the Russian tank forces, graduating in 1997 from the Military Academy of the General Staff.