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Russia removes Sergei Surovikin, nicknamed General Armageddon, as war commander in Ukraine. Photo/Reuters
MOSCOW – A surprising announcement came from Russia . Sergei Surovikin, nicknamed General Armageddon has been removed from his role as commander war in Ukraine .
Surovikin was removed after holding the post for only three months. He will next be replaced by chief of general staff Valery Gerasimov, who heads Russia’s military.
The changes were announced by Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu, and are described as increasing the level of special operations leadership – Moscow’s designation of the invasion of Ukraine.
Surovikin was put in charge of operations in Ukraine in October last year. Although no longer in that position, he will remain as Gerasimov’s deputy.
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The Russian Defense Ministry said the changes were designed to increase the effectiveness of military operations in Ukraine and the need to regulate closer interaction between troop types and weapons.
Infamous for his ruthlessness and brutality, Surovikin was a military veteran who served in the Soviet Union’s war with Afghanistan in the 1980s.
The 56-year-old is best known for ordering troops to fire on pro-democracy protesters in Moscow, when three people were killed in the last days of the Soviet Union in 1991.
In 2017 he led the intervention of Russian troops during the Syrian War.
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