Putin Sacks Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu

Russian President Vladimir Putin has replaced his defense minister and long-time close ally Sergei Shoigu with an economist, a major reshuffle of military leadership more than two years after Moscow’s grinding war against Ukraine has sent defense spending soaring, Helen Regan, Anna Chernova, and Ivana Kottasova reported for CNN.

While the move to relieve Shoigu was downplayed, the reshuffle comes amid speculation about infighting at the highest echelons of power. I Photo: President of Russia

Andrey Belousov, a civilian who served as former first deputy prime minister and specializes in economics, was appointed to the top defense post, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday.

Peskov tried to downplay the move, but the reshuffle comes amid speculation about infighting at the highest echelons of power. Just last month, one of Shoigu’s long-time protégés at the defense ministry was arrested and charged with corruption.

Shoigu was “relieved” of his position by presidential decree, Peskov said, but he will remain an influential part of Putin’s administration as secretary of Russia’s Security Council, replacing Nikolai Patrushev, a former head of the Federal Security Service (FSB), who will “transfer to another job.”

Shoigu will also become the deputy in Russia’s Military-Industrial Commission, Peskov said, as Putin embarks on a fifth term as president. The timing of Shoigu’s exit is notable, coming off the back of several significant advances by Russian troops in eastern Ukraine.