Russia’s ‘General Armageddon’ fired after vanishing in wake of Wagner uprising

A former commander of Russia’s forces in Ukraine who was linked to the leader of an armed rebellion has been dismissed from his job as chief of the air force, according to Russian state media.

The report on Wednesday came after weeks of uncertainty about General Sergei Surovikin’s fate following the short-lived uprising.

Gen Surovikin has not been seen in public since armed rebels marched toward Moscow in June, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner mercenary group.

In a video released during the uprising, Gen Surovikin urged Mr Prigozhin’s men to pull back.

During his long absence, Russian media have speculated about Gen Surovikin’s whereabouts, with some claiming he had been detained due to his purported close ties to Mr Prigozhin.

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, citing an anonymous source, reported that Gen Surovikin has been replaced as commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces by Colonel General Viktor Afzalov, who is currently head of the main staff of the air force.

The Russian government has not commented on the report, and the Associated Press was not able to confirm it independently.

Russian daily newspaper RBC wrote that Gen Surovikin is being transferred to a new job and is now on leave.

Alexei Venediktov, former head of the now-closed radio station Ekho Moskvy, and Ksenia Sobchak, the daughter of a politician linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin, both wrote on social media on Tuesday that Gen Surovikin had been removed.

In late June, Gen Surovikin’s daughter told the Russian social media channel Baza that her father had not been arrested.

The Wagner uprising posed the most serious challenge to President Putin’s 23-year rule and reports circulated that Gen Surovikin had known about it in advance.

According to Ms Sobchak, Gen Surovikin was removed from his post on August 18, “by a closed decree. The family still has no contact with him.”

Gen Surovikin was dubbed “General Armageddon” for his brutal military campaign in Syria and led Russia’s operations in Ukraine between October 2022 and January 2023.

Under his command, Russian forces unleashed regular missile barrages on Ukrainian cities, significantly damaging civilian infrastructure and disrupting heating, electricity and water supplies.

Both Gen Surovikin and Mr Prigozhin were active in Syria, where Russian forces have fought to shore up President Bashar Assad’s government since 2015.

Gen Surovikin was replaced as commander in Russia’s war in Ukraine by Chief of General Staff General Valery Gerasimov, following Russia’s withdrawal from the southern city of Kherson amid a swift counter-offensive by Kyiv’s troops, but the air force general continued to serve under Gen Gerasimov as a deputy commander.

Mr Prigozhin had spoken positively of Gen Surovikin while criticising Russia’s military brass, and suggested he should be appointed Chief of General Staff to replace Gen Gerasimov.