In a dramatic turn of events, Russia’s Chief of the General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, has made his first public appearance since the failed mercenary mutiny on June 24. In a video released on Monday, General Gerasimov was seen ordering subordinates to destroy Ukrainian missile sites, indicating that President Vladimir Putin has retained his trust in the country’s top military officials.
The video shows General Gerasimov sitting in a military command center, presiding over a meeting with senior generals. He received a report from Viktor Afzalov, deputy in the aerospace forces to General Sergei Surovikin, who has not been seen in public since the mutiny. The defense ministry confirmed that the footage was from a meeting held on Sunday and reaffirmed Gerasimov’s positions as the chief of the general staff of Russia’s armed forces and the commander of Moscow’s forces in Ukraine.
During the meeting, Gerasimov was informed that a Ukrainian missile attack on Crimea and the Rostov and Kaluga regions had been successfully thwarted. He then ordered the aerospace forces and military intelligence to identify the storage sites and launch positions of the missiles, emphasizing the need for a preemptive strike against enemy strike weapons.
The survival of both Gerasimov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu despite demands from mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin to dismiss them demonstrates a failure on Prigozhin’s part to oust Putin’s top military brass. Prigozhin, who had openly insulted and criticized the generals, accused them of incompetence and treason in their handling of the military operations in Ukraine.
While the video footage blurs the faces of most participants, it prominently features Afzalov, Surovikin’s deputy. However, Surovikin’s current whereabouts remain unknown. The video also showcased Colonel-General Sergei Rudskoi and Colonel-General Alexei Kim, both subordinates of General Gerasimov.
In the aftermath of the mercenary mutiny, Putin and the Kremlin have maintained a semblance of normalcy, with Putin chairing meetings, engaging with the public, and appearing in various public settings. The failed attempt to remove the top military officials reflects the resilience of Putin’s leadership and underscores the ongoing power struggle within Russia.
As tensions continue to rise in the region, the fate of Ukraine remains uncertain. The actions and decisions made by Russia’s military leadership will undoubtedly shape the dynamics of the conflict and have far-reaching consequences for the region as a whole.
It remains to be seen how these developments will impact the ongoing military operations in Ukraine and whether there will be further attempts to undermine the positions of Gerasimov and Shoigu. As the situation evolves, the world watches with bated breath, aware of the potential ramifications of this power struggle on regional stability.
