Kremlin is hiding real reasons for dismissals of Russian Defense Ministry leadership – ISW

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported the information.

It noted that with such accusations, the Kremlin conceals the true reasons for the dismissal of specific people who have lost confidence in the Russian Ministry of Defense.

After the arrest of Russian Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov on April 24, 5 high-ranking officials of the Russian Defense Ministry and former military commanders were arrested. At the same time, a Russian insider source claimed that 6 more officials were planning to resign following former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

Russian propagandists also claim that the Russian Defense Ministry has dismissed the commander of the 20th Combined Arms Army (Moscow Military District), Lieutenant General Sukhrab Akhmedov. ISW cannot confirm this, but the claims of his resignation are noteworthy as it would be the first dismissal of an officer actively commanding Russian troops in Ukraine in the recent wave of dismissals. 

• On May 1, UK intelligence said that corruption in the Russian Defense Ministry was one of the factors behind Russia's low efficiency, especially at the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
• On May 23, Lieutenant General Vadim Shamarin, the head of the Main Communications Directorate, was detained in Russia; he is also the deputy chief of the Russian General Staff, Gerasimov. He was arrested for bribery.