Lieutenant-General Yuri Kuznetsov, head of the Defense Ministry’s personnel department, was arrested by masked security forces on charges of accepting bribes. The arrest occurred shortly after President Vladimir Putin replaced Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with Andrei Belousov, a move signaling a major reshuffle aimed at revitalizing the military’s leadership amid the war in Ukraine.
The charges against Kuznetsov are linked to allegations that from 2021 to 2023, he accepted significant bribes from commercial enterprises to facilitate favorable actions within his official capacity. This arrest is part of what appears to be a wider crackdown within the Defense Ministry, which has seen other high-ranking officials, including Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, facing similar accusations.
Two boxes of documents were taken from the apartment of the arrested General Yuri Kuznetsov in the center of #Moscow. Searches are currently underway in Ruzheyny Lane.
There are police at the building. The military takes away documents and other evidence in the bribery case. pic.twitter.com/20UsnJBvdw
— Aurora Borealis 🤫 (@aborealis940) May 14, 2024
The Kremlin has framed these arrests as part of an “anti-corruption purge,” essential for introducing innovation and efficiency within the military sector, particularly highlighted by the appointment of Belousov, who lacks a traditional military background but is praised for his economic expertise. The recent upheavals within the ministry also reflect ongoing tensions and the repercussions of last year’s mutiny led by Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, which has been cited as a catalyst for these dramatic changes.
Pro-war factions within Russia, linked to the late Prigozhin, have reportedly expressed satisfaction with these developments, interpreting them as overdue justice against what they perceive as pervasive corruption that has undermined the Russian military’s effectiveness in Ukraine.
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