Russia reorganized its military leadership in Ukraine: it appointed a general who commanded the troops in Syria

Russia has reorganized the military leadership that runs operations in Ukraine to try to improve the coordination of its units on the ground, as reported by the EFE agency.

The Kremlin has designated General Alexander Dvornikov, with previous experience in Syria, as the first link in the chain of command to lead the invasion, the source told the public channel, which does not reveal his identity.

Born in 1961, he joined the army of the Soviet Union as a young man. After rising several ranks, he received the Order of Military Merit in 1996 and after his prominent role in the war in Syria against jihadism, in alliance with the forces of Bashar al-Assad, he received the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. In 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin promoted him to the rank of general.

The Russian army has so far maintained various operational groups with independent commanders, and 44 days after the start of the attacks in Ukraine it has failed to achieve its objectives or take large cities of the country, nor is it close to taking the capital, Kiev. On the contrary, in recent weeks he announced a retreat to concentrate on the east of the country.

Vladimir Putin aims to put certain “political imperatives” ahead of other “military priorities” when deciding his next steps, the agency added citing sources from the British broadcaster BBC.

Moscow is trying to accelerate the achievement of goals in order to achieve “some kind of success” before May 9, when Russia commemorates victory in World War II.

Last Thursday, Russia acknowledged having suffered “significant casualties” among its military personnel deployed in Ukraine. “We have significant casualties among the troops and it is a great tragedy for us,” said Dmitri Peskov in an interview with the British private channel Sky News, without specifying his number.

In recent days, Russian troops have withdrawn from the vicinity of Kiev and other parts of Ukraine to focus their efforts on an offensive in the Donbas region in the east of the country.

The governor of the Lugansk region, Sergiy Gaiday, said this week that the Russians “cut off all possible avenues of exit” in the region and urged the civilian population to leave as soon as possible. “The next few days may be the last chance to get out,” Gaiday said on Facebook. “Do not hesitate to evacuate,” he insisted.

The appeal especially concerns the inhabitants of Severodonetsk, the easternmost city under the control of Kiev, the target of frequent shelling.

(With information from EFE and AFP)

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