Factbox: Who is the new Russian war commander Gerasimov and why was he appointed?

Jan 12 (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin’s defense minister has named Russia’s highest-ranking general, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, 67, to lead his most dramatic war in Ukraine. of a series of command changes since the invasion of Russia in February. .

CRITICAL

Many nationalist war bloggers authorized by the Kremlin to criticize the conduct of the war have blamed Gerasimov for the fact that a military superpower – supposedly modernized and re-equipped at great expense over the past 15 years – has failed so blatantly to subjugate its much smaller neighbor.

Critics in Ukraine, the West and even inside Russia call the Russian armed forces naïve, ill-prepared and ill-equipped, slow to react and torn apart by disparate and often distant command structures.

After an unplanned mobilization campaign to turn the tide in favor of Russia failed, rumors had been circulating for months that Gerasimov, largely invisible to the public, would be sidelined.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Group contract militia, and Ramzan Kadyrov, leader of the republic of Chechnya in southern Russia, made thinly veiled criticisms of Gerasimov while demonstratively claiming successes on the battlefield for their own supposedly superior semi-autonomous forces.

Defense Department supporters say that Russia often misbehaves at the start of wars and that many of the problems that have emerged in supply, technology and command over the past 10 months have been or are to be resolved.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE BATTLEGROUND?

The Defense Ministry said the seniority of the commander in charge of the “special military operation” reflects the expansion of its scale and the need to improve organization and command.

Gerasimov’s deputies will be Army General Sergei Surovikin, the former theater commander, appointed three months ago and nicknamed “General Armageddon”; Army General Oleg Salyukov; and Deputy Chief of Staff Colonel General Alexei Kim.

Igor Korochenko, a die-hard military pundit who enjoys generous space on state television, said Putin’s decision stemmed from Ukraine’s receipt of longer-range heavy weapons from the West. and the prospect that it would soon receive Western armored fighting vehicles and possibly battle tanks.

He said Gerasimov’s arrival increased the likelihood of Russia using nuclear weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine:

“The appointment of Gerasimov means that all means of destruction in the arsenals of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation – without exception – can be used.”

Shoigu pledged on Tuesday to build a deeper weapons arsenal, boost aviation technology to better evade air defenses and improve drone production.

WHAT ABOUT POLITICS?

By placing Gerasimov in direct command, Putin can send a signal to the West about his determination to win the war, strengthen the position of the army against the militias of Prigozhin and Kadyrov and, above all, make his general-in-chief more responsible for the day. Current conduct of the invasion.

“Now the General Staff is directly and uncompromisingly responsible for absolutely everything,” said Semyon Pegov, a Russian military blogger who uses the name Wargonzo.

“‘General Armageddon’ is still at the center of decision-making, but in a much less vulnerable position.”

Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of analytics firm R.Politik, wasn’t convinced the change would make much of a difference.

“Gerasimov was given command of the military operation because of Surovikin’s severe setbacks,” she said.

“Putin is looking for effective tactics in the context of a ‘creeping’ defeat.”

“He tries to redistribute the coins and therefore gives chances to those he finds persuasive. Today Gerasimov proved persuasive. Tomorrow it could be anyone else.”

WHO IS GERASIMOV?

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

Each of the men holds one of three nuclear briefcases that can order a Russian nuclear strike.

Gerasimov played a key role in Russia’s capture of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and in Russia’s groundbreaking military support for President Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian civil war.

The US State Department sanctioned him the day after the invasion of Ukraine, saying he was one of three senior Russian officials alongside Putin who were directly responsible for the war.

Nevertheless, Gerasimov occasionally speaks with US Army General Mark Milley, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Gerasimov was born on September 8, 1955 in Kazan, rising through the ranks of the Russian Tank Forces to graduate in 1997 from the General Staff Military Academy.

Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Kevin Liffey

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