Putin appoints new general to oversee Russian “military operation” in Ukraine

Europe, News April 11, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Russian President Vladimir Putin has appointed a new military general to direct his war in Ukraine

According to the U.S. and European officials, the change was made after the Russian forces failed to capture Kyiv after several ground attacks and attempts.

General Alexander Dvornikov, who had been serving as the commander of Russia’s Southern Military District, has now been appointed as the commander of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.

According to some speculating reports, the newly appointed general has been given a deadline of May 9 to make sure the Russian forces enter Kyiv. The date of May 9 already holds a significant value in Russia as it marks the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s triumph over Germany during World War 2.

Western analysts, however, find the self-imposed deadline on a newly appointed general as an unnecessary pressure that may lead to further mistakes rather than hastening the process of war.

The newly appointed General Alexander Dvornikov is a seasoned and decorated military general who has been serving as the commander of the Southern Military District since July 2016, by the decree from President Putin. Before Dvornikov also served as deputy commander and chief of the Serbian Military District and well as deputy commander of the Eastern Military District. The 60 years old commander has also served as commander of Russia’s military operations in Syria in 2015.

^{Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, second left, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy Nikolai Yevmenov, second right, Commander of the troops of the Southern Military District Alexander Dvornikov. (Image Credit: Kremlin/Alexei Druzhinin/via AP)}

The Russian military made extensive use of airstrikes and shelling during Dvornikov‘s time in Syria. So far, Russia has used a heavy-handed approach in Ukraine through its artillery and ground forces in order to attack major cities through ground-to-ground missiles. Dvornikov holds a reputation for using extensive aerial strikes as he did in Syria from 2015 to 2016. With him being in charge of the Russian military in Ukraine, some analysts believe that Russia would shift towards aerial strikes and shelling approaches to make the major cities fall.

The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense and some western media outlets have been reporting that factions of Russian forces had been withdrawing from Northern Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian air force claimed to down 13 Russian aerial targets. According to the Air Force Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Russia lost five UAVs, four missiles, three airplanes, and one helicopter on April 9.

The news came out on the same day as the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. Johnson said that he decided to come to Ukraine to meet President Zelenskyy in person and show his country’s solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

“Today I met my friend President Zelenskyy in Kyiv as a show of our unwavering support for the people of Ukraine. We`re setting out a new package of financial & military aid which is a testament of our commitment to his country`s struggle against Russia`s barbaric campaign,” Johnson tweeted after he met with the Ukrainian President.