The Kremlin has replaced the head of its navy, Russian state media has confirmed, following a series of successful attacks on its Black Sea fleet by Ukraine.
The announcement was made Tuesday, March 19. Until then it was unclear if Admiral Nikolay Yevmenov had in fact been replaced, Knewz.com has learned.
The new head of Russia’s navy is Admiral Alexander Moiseyev, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
According to the agency, Moiseyev has been appointed the acting Navy commander-in-chief, and he was officially introduced in his new position on Tuesday at celebrations during “Submariner Day” in Kronshtadt, about 12 miles from St. Petersburg.
During the celebrations the presenter announced, “The ceremony of handing over the ship bowls to submarine crews of the Navy begins. Acting Navy Commander-in-Chief Hero of Russia Admiral Alexander Moiseyev.”
Prior to this appointment, Moiseyev had been the Northern Fleet commander since 2019, taking over from Yevmenov, who was promoted to the Navy’s commander-in-chief position.
Russian state media has not yet made any mention of Yevemenov’s fate, but speculation had been rife for weeks that he had been fired, following a string of losses of Black Sea fleet ships in multiple Ukrainian attacks.
The RIA news agency reported that when confronted with speculation about Yevmenov being replaced by Moiseyev, Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said there had been “no open decrees on this,” and he could not comment on decrees classified as “secret.”
However, since Putin invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Ukraine has claimed to have destroyed more than two dozen Russian ships (about a third of its fleet), including a military patrol boat earlier this month.
As a result of the ongoing attacks, Russia has had to move its ships from the Sevastopol naval base in Crimea to the Novorossiysk port, further east.
AFP reported that the sinkings of Black Sea fleet ships are seen as an “embarrassment” for Moscow.
CNN also reported that by pushing back Russia’s fleet, it has allowed Ukraine to open a maritime corridor to export grain and other goods to the world. In addition, CNN reported, the losses have seen the Kremlin redouble its efforts to strengthen its naval position. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered the navy to add more firepower to its ships to counter Ukrainian drones and train personnel day and night.
RIA included a brief history of Moiseyev’s life and career:
- Born April 16, 1962, in Kaliningrad
- Drafted into the Soviet Army in 1981
- Graduated from the Russian navy officer course in 1995.
- Received honors from the Kuznetsov Naval Academy in St. Petersburg in 2003
- Graduated from the military academy of the General Staff in 2011
- Served on nuclear submarines for more than 29 years
- Served on the Delta-class of Soviet nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines as part of the Northern Fleet.
- Awarded the Order of Courage for his participation in an operation in the North Pole in 1994.
- Made a Hero of Russia in 2011.
- Appointed acting commander and then commander of the Black Sea Fleet in 2018.
- Appointed commander of the Northern Fleet in 2019
The post Russia Replaces Naval Chief Following Ukrainian Black Sea Attacks That Decimated Putin’s Fleet appeared first on Knewz.
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Author: Kelly Hartog
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