A Russian general has been killed in Ukraine in what amounts to a major blow for Russia as it enters its second week after last Thursday’s invasion of the country.
Major General Andrey Sukhovetsky, the deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of Russia’s Central Military District, who also participated in the invasion of Crimea in 2014, was killed yesterday.
Although his death has not yet been officially confirmed by the Russian Ministry of Defense, it was announced on social media by his colleague Sergey Chipilyov and was widely reported by Russian and Ukrainian news outlets as well as the US’ military newspaper, the Stars and Stripes.
Russian general killed, perhaps by sniper, as Ukraine invasion enters eighth day
Alexander Kots, a correspondent for the Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda, λαο described the major general’s death in a post on the social network Telegram.
Chipilyov, of the Airborne Forces Union of Russian Paratroopers, confirmed Sukhovetsky’s death on social media earlier on Friday in what is seen as the most definitive proof of the general’s death.
Top Russian general killed in Ukraine. Major General Andrey Sukhovetsky, deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of Russia’s Central Military District, died after being shot by a Ukrainian defense force sniper. pic.twitter.com/DKN45fSOlK
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) March 4, 2022
“With great pain, we received the tragic news about the death of our friend, Major-General Andrey Aleksandrovich Sukhovetsky, in Ukraine during a special operation.
“We express our deepest condolences to his family,” the post read.
Britain’s Daily Mail reports that a military source confirmed that Sukhovetsky was killed “by a sniper,” suggesting a funeral for the Major General, who is far and away the most senior Russian to have been killed in the invasion, will be held in Russia tomorrow, Saturday.
Stars & Stripes says that Sukhovetsy’s death was confirmed by a local officers’ organization located in the Krasnodar region of southern Russia, although it maintains that the circumstances of his death are not clear at this time. It was not immediately clear where in Ukraine Sukhovetsky was killed.
The 47-year-old major general began his military service as a platoon commander after graduating from a Russian military academy, steadily rising through the ranks to assume leadership in many different areas. He also took part in the Russian military campaign in Syria, according to Stars & Stripes.
After days of skirting the subject of casualties, on Thursday the Kremlin announced that 498 of its troops have been killed in Ukraine and 1,600 injured in the invasion of the country; it is widely believed, however, that the actual figure is much higher, with some saying it is in the thousands.
The Ukrainian armed forces claimed on Friday that the Russian armed forces had suffered a staggering 9,000 casualties; of course, this cannot be verified, with the Ukrainian officials admitting any calculation of the death toll “is complicated by the high intensity of hostilities.”
Major General Sukhovetsky was the deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of Russia’s Central Military District, appointed to that position in October of 2021.
Before that posting, he commanded the 7th Airborne Assault Division in Novorossiysk for three years, and had taken part in several combat deployments in the Chechen war, Abkhazia and Syria.
The Daily Mail reports that Sukhovetsky participated twice in the Victory Parade in Moscow’s Red Square, and was awarded two Orders of Courage, the Order of Military Merit and the Medal of Courage by the Russian state.
He also received a special commendation for his part in Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which took place in 2014.
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