Another major personnel change has taken place in the Russian military system. By decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Colonel-General Viktor Afzalov has been dismissed from his post as commander of the country's Aerospace Forces. Russian media reported on this.
It is reported that Afzalov had been serving in this position since 2023. He was appointed to this role to replace Sergey Surovikin. Now, his place has been taken by Colonel-General Alexander Chaiko.
According to sources from the RBK publication, Alexander Chaiko previously served as commander-in-chief of the Air Force and is considered to have extensive experience in the Russian army.
The 54-year-old general was born in the Moscow region. He graduated from the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School and began his military career as a reconnaissance platoon commander. Later, he held various leadership positions, rising to the rank of commander of the 1st Tank Army of the Western Military District.
Also, in 2001, Alexander Chaiko graduated from the M.V. Frunze Combined Arms Academy of the Armed Forces, and in 2012, from the Military Academy of the General Staff.
In 2019, he was appointed First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces and Deputy Chief of the General Staff. That same year, the general was sent on a mission to Syria, where he led the Russian military group until June 2021.
According to the Izvestia publication, Alexander Chaiko was awarded the title of Hero of Russia in 2020.
Some analysts and media representatives believe that this personnel change may be related to the intensification of drone attacks carried out by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on strategic facilities within Russian territory.
In particular, Russia's fuel and energy infrastructure has been attacked several times in recent months. It is said that strikes on Baltic ports in March affected oil supply processes.
In April, a total of 20 attacks were recorded against nine oil refineries in Russia. According to sources, production processes were temporarily halted at five of them.
In particular, the fact that facilities in the city of Tuapse were struck several times, as well as attacks on the Transneft and Permnefteorgsintez enterprises in the Perm region, are causing significant discussion.
So far, Russian officials have not officially stated that the personnel change is related to these specific events. However, analysts suggest that such changes in the country's military system are driven by mounting pressure in the security and defense sectors.
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