Vladimir Putin is conducting a major military shakeup, starting with his Black Sea Fleet after it suffered heavy losses against Ukraine.
Russia’s president has started by removing Admiral Viktor Sokolov, who was until this week the commander of the Black Sea Fleet.
The Telegram channel Military Informant wrote: “It seems that it has become impossible to ignore the latest heavy losses of the fleet.”
Vice-Admiral Sergey Pinchuk has stepped into the role, but the former deputy is reportedly only there temporarily as the Kremlin searches for a long-term replacement. That is according to pro-Moscow military analyst Sergey Markov.
Markov wrote on Telelgram that the move has “been met with great understanding and approval in Russia.”
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NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a press conference earlier this month: “The Ukrainians have been able to inflict serious damage on the Russian Black Sea fleet.”
But the Black Sea fleet commander is not the only military leader Putin has fired.
In April 2023, Putin sacked Colonel-General Rustam Muradov as commander of the Eastern Group of Forces (EGF) after suffering heavy losses in eastern Ukraine.
In the same month, Putin got rid of Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, 60, who oversaw the violent siege on the port city of Mariupol. This earned him the nickname the “butcher of Mariupol”.
Meanwhile in June 2023, General Valery Gerasimov, 67, was ousted as conflict commander less than six months after he was appointed.
Last January, Moscow announced that it would make “major changes” to its army between 2023 and 2026.
Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said at the time: “Only by strengthening the key structural components of the Armed Forces is it possible to guarantee the military security of the state and protect new entities and critical facilities of the Russian Federation.”
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