British intelligence said that recent public actions indicated that Surovikin had been punished in Russia after the mutiny.

Colonel General Sergei Surovkin, commander of the Russian forces. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)

Intelligence services United kingdom She indicated that the recent public appearance of the Deputy Commander of the Russian Air Force, Victor Afdalov“strengthening the hypothesis” that the commander of this branch of the armed forces, Sergey Surovkinshe was “dismissed” after her brief mutiny on 24 June Wagner Group.

“The increase in Afzalov’s public profile, while Surovikin’s whereabouts remain unclear, reinforces the hypothesis that Surovikin was removed after the riots,” they said, according to a statement released by the British Ministry of Defense via your account on the social network Twitter. .

This week, Azzlov appeared in a video posted by the Russian Ministry of Defense on its Telegram account, in which the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces also appeared, Valery Gerasimovwho thus engaged in his first public action since the insurrection led by the head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

The leader of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, speaks inside the headquarters of the South Russian Army’s military command center in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, in this still image taken from video released Feb. 24. June 2023. Concorde Press Service/Handout via Reuters/File photo

In this sense, the British intelligence services noted that “Afdalov has been in office for at least four years, but this is probably his first public appearance with Gerasimov,” who was appointed by the Russian president in January, Russian President Vladimir PutinAs the commander of the Russian forces in Ukraine, specifically to replace Surovikin.

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Britain said last week that Prigozhin’s rebellion had “exacerbated divisions in the Russian national security community”. Thus, they said that “although he is chiefly known in the West for his brutal reputation, Surovikin is one of the most respected officers in the Russian army,” and emphasized that “any official punishment against him could cause divisions.”

Prigozhin led a mutiny on 24 June that included the advance of his forces towards the capital, Moscow, although hours later an agreement was reached implying the withdrawal of members of the Wagner Group with a view to their possible integration into the army and the dropping of charges against those involved in the revolution.

(With information from Europa Press)

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