Vladimir Putin’s top nuclear submarine force commander has been killed after his vehicle was bombarded by heavy machine gun fire.
Captain 1st Rank Ivan Kovgan, 52, was killed in the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh where he was seconded as deputy commander of a peacekeeping contingent.
In a crushing blow for Putin, Azerbaijan has now regained control of its breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in a deadly two-day military offensive.
Azerbaijan’s move to reclaim control over Nagorno-Karabakh raised concerns that a full-scale war in the region could resume. The 2020 war killed over 6,700 people.
Kovgan was deputy commander of Russia’s Northern Fleet submarine force based in the Arctic and died alongside Colonel Tagir-Murod Karaev, from Russia’s Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defence Forces.
Four other Russian servicemen also died when their UAZ Patriot vehicle was sprayed with bullets by the Azerbaijani army.
A source said: “Their vehicle came under fire. Everyone was killed.”
Those responsible for the shooting of the submarine commander and other peacekeepers have been detained, and are expected to face criminal action.
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