Corruption is formal guise to dismiss senior officials of Russian Defence Ministry – ISW

The Kremlin is purposefully removing senior officials from the Russian Defence Ministry and has already extended this effort to dismiss high-ranking officers in charge of Russian combat operations in Ukraine.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Quote: "The Kremlin is likely using the guise of corruption charges as an excuse to hide the real reasons for ousting specific individuals from the MoD who have fallen from favour, as ISW has recently assessed."

Details: On 23 May, the Investigative Committee of Russia announced that Lieutenant General Vadim Shamarin, Deputy Chief of the General Staff and the Head of the Main Communications Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces, and Vladimir Verteletsky, Head of the Department of Public Procurement of the Russian Defence Ministry, had been arrested.

Shamarin is accused of receiving a bribe of at least 36 million roubles (about US$392,000), and two people involved in the case from the Russian telecommunications industry have agreed to testify against him.

Verteletsky is accused of corruption and receiving a large bribe, which resulted in a total loss of 70 million roubles (US$763,000). 

Five senior Russian Defence Ministry officials and former military commanders were arrested on corruption charges following the arrest of Russian Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov that occurred on 24 April.

A Russian insider source previously claimed that six more Defence Ministry officials are planning to resign after former Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was removed from his post. 

Russian ultra-nationalist military bloggers also claimed that the Russian Ministry of Defence had fired Lieutenant General Sukhrab Akhmedov, the commander of the 20th Combined Arms Army (Moscow Military District). ISW could not confirm Akhmedov's dismissal, but the announcement of his resignation is drawing attention as it would be the first dismissal of an officer actively commanding Russian forces in Ukraine in the recent wave of dismissals. Currently, the 20th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade is focused on offensive operations on the Lyman front and was unable to achieve significant tactical success in this area during the offensive on the Kharkiv-Luhansk front in the winter and spring of 2024.

Official statements from the Kremlin and speculation by bloggers about arrests and changes in command indicate that more senior officers of the Russian Federation may be at risk of dismissal.

To quote the ISW’s Key Takeaways on 23 May:  

• The Kremlin is pursuing a concerted effort to remove senior Russian defence officials and has likely expanded this effort to senior officers commanding Russian combat operations in Ukraine.
• Russian border guards removed buoys in Estonian waters of the Narva River, which demarcates the Estonian-Russian international border, likely to set conditions to further question maritime borders and test NATO resolve.
• Select US officials are reportedly pressing for a reconsideration of the White House's current policy prohibiting Ukraine from using US-provided weapons to strike within Russia.
• Polish Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Pawel Wronski stated on 23 May that Poland is considering using its air defence to protect Ukrainian airspace against Russian strikes.
• Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence conducted a series of drone strikes against Russian defence industrial facilities in the Republic of Tatarstan on 23 May.
• Iranian leaders have used the occasion of President Ebrahim Raisi's funeral events to emphasise close ties with Armenia even as tensions between Yerevan and Moscow continue to increase.
• Ukrainian forces advanced near Lukiantsi and Kreminna, and Russian forces advanced near Berestove, Chasiv Yar, Avdiivka, Donetsk City, and Velyka Novosilka.
• The Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) proposed applying regular military punishments to volunteers, likely as part of the MoD's continued formalisation efforts.

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