Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief on Russian Commander: "He’s a typical martinet from Peter the Great’s time"

Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has expressed his opinion about Sergey Surovikin, the commander of the Russian forces in Ukraine, describing him as a typical commander from the time of Peter the Great.

Source: Zaluzhnyi in an interview with The Economist

Quote: "With all due respect to Mr Surovikin, if you look at him, he is an ordinary commander from the time of Peter the Great, let's say, a typical Derzhimorda [a brutal martinet in Gogol’s play "The Government Inspector" – ed.]. You look at him and understand that either you fulfil the task or you are finished. And we realised a long time ago that this approach does not work."

Details: According to Zaluzhnyi, everything is different in the Ukrainian army - for example, 21-year-old lieutenants are sometimes commanding men of 50 or 60. And it is impossible to "keep order with fists and biceps" in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Quote: "One can always be normal. To be normal means to remain human in any situation – this is the most important thing. To remain human, and to become a leader. Be smarter, be stronger, be more talented, and then try to lead people. This is the religion I follow."

More details: Zaluzhnyi stressed that he trusts his generals and listens to those on the field. "Because the initiative is there," explained the Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief.

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