Because Sergey Surovikin, the general who bombed Kiev, is proof of Putin’s weakness

“I have known him for 15 years, he is a true general and warrior, an experienced commander for whom concepts such as patriotism, honor and dignity are always above all.” words and music from Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader who sent thousands of his own to fight in Ukraine. he followed suit Evgenyj Prigozhincalled “Putin’s cook” because he had a restaurant in St Petersburg, but now better known as the founder of the mercenary army Wagner, also engaged in Ukraine, also pledged to praise “the courage and determination” of the new Russian army commander expeditionary force: the general Sergey Vladimirovich Surovikin56, a Siberian from Novosibirsk, known in Russian military circles as “General Armageddon” for his inclination to fight with brutal resolve and, above all, to carry out orders received.

We will return to the praises of Kadyron and Prigozhin and their true meaning. But first, a little bit of Surovikin’s history. That his career could have been cut short since 1991, when he was just 24 years old. In the days of the attempted coup against Mikhail Gorbachevwhen the crowd invaded the streets at the call of Boris Yeltsin, and he led a squadron of motorized infantry at one of the barricades in central Moscow. Three people died and he ended up in an investigation that lasted seven months. Dismissed, because he had carried out orders from above. A few years later, in 1995, another problem in the form of an indictment for illegal arms trafficking. It turned out that he had lent a colleague a pistol which he later used in a shooting match. Released from all charges. When he started, his career proceeded at a great pace, from command to command, from promotion to promotion. In 2002, another moment of embarrassment, when a colonel committed suicide in Surovikin’s presence precisely because of the violent criticism he had directed at him. No consequences, really: another star for his badass reputation.

Surovikin participated in the second war in Chechnya and was the protagonist of the military intervention in Syria in favor of Bashar al-Assad, becoming the leader of Russian troops between 2017 and 2019 and thus obtaining the title of Hero of Russia. And in 2021 he was named a general, the highest rank currently held by any officer in the Russian army.

On the day the Ukrainians blew up the Crimean bridge, Surovikin was finally put in charge of the Russian expedition to Ukraine. And as of February 24, the day the Russian invasion began, it is the first time the Kremlin has announced the name of a single commander. Previously, command was fragmented between senior officers responsible for different groupings. Surovikin’s leadership now encompasses them all. And coincidentally, its arrival at the summit coincided with the most massive wave of bombings on infrastructure and cities in Ukraine: a wave of 90 missiles and dozens of kamikaze drones that hit Kiev, Dnipro, Zhitomir, Krivoy Rog, L’viv and other major centers. from the country.

And here the different twins return to the scene, Kadyrov and Prigozhin, who in unison applauded the appointment of Surovikin (as we said before) and the launch of the missiles. The two have been on the attack for some time. For several weeks, especially since Ukraine launched an effective counter-offensive, the two have been clamoring for the resignation of the Defense Minister Shoigu and Chief of Staff Gerasimov, they say they are to blame for the setbacks suffered by the Russian army. Vladimir Putin does not fire them and the reason is simple: expelling them would mean admitting that the famous “special military operation” failed. It would mean acknowledging responsibility for a defeat and, from there, who knows what might happen.

Remember: the special military operation, as such, did indeed fail. Putin’s idea was to conquer a significant part of Ukraine with a small army made up of only hired volunteers, without “disturbing” ordinary Russian citizens. It didn’t work and the Kremlin had to launch the “partial mobilization” of 300,000 reservists. Which means the war is entering 300,000 families. This turn has reinforced the criticism (the only ones that count, because the dissent of intellectuals, artists and young people who take to the streets is noble but irrelevant) of all those who, in the Putinian power system, press for a transition to a real, total war. , without brakes. If Kadyrov and Prigozhin scream, strong from the credits accumulated in the Kremlin, other no less influential characters whisper in the corridors of power. The heads of security services, for example. And those of the National Guard, a chosen corps of 300,000 men, founded by Putin himself in 2016, which in fact answer not to the Ministry of Defense (i.e. Shoigu and Gerasimov), but to the Ministry of the Interior, led by Lieutenant General. Vladimir Kolokolcevin office since 2012, one of the few ministers to have survived the radical reshuffle following amendments to the 2020 constitution that virtually guaranteed Putin, barring twists and turns, to remain in the Kremlin for life.

From what we can see, therefore, a dissent is forming around Putin who, while respecting certain precautions, is no longer afraid to expose himself. On top of all this, finally, came the attack on the Crimea Bridge, which is not only a fundamental infrastructure for the conduct of the war, but is also the most powerful symbol of the union of Crimea, reattached in 2014, to Great Mother Russia. , for mainland Russia. So Putin had to at least partially satisfy the foliage. By appointing a single commander in the person of the general most beloved by the hawks, Surovikin in fact. And giving the green light to the kind of war they want, the one that involves carpet bombing Ukraine’s support structures. Exactly the sort of thing General Armageddon does his best (or worst) of himself.