Russian delegation in Africa
“General Armageddon” appears in Algeria
September 15, 2023, 7:34 p.m
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After the mutiny of the Wagner mercenary group, Major General Surovikin disappears from the scene. Now the Russian top military is back. Photos show the 56-year-old as part of a Moscow delegation to Algeria.
According to media reports, Russian general Sergei Surovikin, who was long lost after the Wagner mercenaries’ coup, is said to be in Algeria for negotiations with a delegation from the Ministry of Defense. The trip shows that the military leadership in Moscow attaches greater importance to cooperation with the Arabic-speaking region and continues to have confidence in Surovikin, the daily newspaper “Kommersant” quoted an informant from the general’s circle. The paper speculates that the general could get a post related to the Middle East issue. The newspaper published photos that apparently show the 56-year-old in Algeria. The Telegram channel Gray Zone, which is affiliated with the Wagner Group, also published similar images.
Billionaire Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenary group was active on behalf of Moscow on the African continent for a long time. Prigozhin’s units also fought in Ukraine. However, in June, Prigozhin launched a short-lived uprising against the military leadership around Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
Surovikin is said to have been interrogated by the FSB
Although he ended the uprising himself and was officially pardoned by the Kremlin, Prigozhin died in August in a plane crash that was believed to be intentional. Since then, the Defense Ministry has been trying to take over the Wagner connections in Africa.
Surovikin, who earned the nickname “General Armageddon” during the Syrian civil war, was commander in chief of Russian troops in Ukraine from October 2022 to early 2023. During this time, he ordered the withdrawal of Moscow’s units from the city of Kherson. He was considered one of Prigozhin’s most important allies in the Russian army during his power struggle with Shoigu and Gerasimov.
Surovikin publicly condemned the uprising by Prigozhin’s Wagner troupe at the end of June, but he was no longer seen in public after that. According to media reports, there were investigations into whether he might have been involved in the mercenaries’ mutiny. During this time, Surovikin is said to have been under house arrest and interrogated by the Russian secret service FSB.
According to media reports, he was removed from his position as head of the Russian Aerospace Forces in mid-August. Surovikin only appeared in public again for the first time in Moscow at the beginning of September. Last week was the headline on the pro-government Russian news platform EADailythat Surovikin had been appointed head of the Coordination Committee for Air Defense Issues of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).