ANOTHER GENERAL ARRESTED FOR BRIBERY IN RUSSIA’S ‘FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION’

Thu 23 May 2024:

In the fourth high-profile military arrest within a month, Russia has detained Lieutenant-General Vadim Shamarin, deputy head of the army’s general staff, for suspected large-scale bribe-taking. On Wednesday, a military court ordered Shamarin, also the head of the Ministry of Defence’s main communications directorate, to be jailed for two months, as reported by TASS news agency.

This detention follows the recent arrests of other senior defense officials in a crackdown on corruption involving military contracts. Earlier in the month, Major-General Ivan Popov, a former top commander in Ukraine, and Lieutenant-General Yuri Kuznetsov, head of the Defence Ministry’s personnel directorate, were also detained on bribery charges.

In April, Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov was arrested for alleged bribery, leading to President Vladimir Putin dismissing then-Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, replacing him with economist Andrei Belousov.

Shoigu faced criticism for Russia’s failed early attempts to capture Kyiv and was accused of incompetence and corruption by Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, who died in a plane crash last year after a failed mutiny. Additionally, three others, including a friend of Ivanov and a construction company boss, have been arrested in this anti-corruption drive.

Shamarin serves under General Valery Gerasimov, head of the general staff, who has not been accused of wrongdoing but has faced criticism for the military’s performance in Ukraine.

The Kremlin denied on Thursday that authorities were carrying out a targeted purge.

“The fight against corruption is an ongoing effort. It is not a campaign. It is an integral part of the activities of law enforcement agencies,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

These arrests and leadership changes come as Russian forces launch a major assault on Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, marking a significant battlefield advance. The latest attacks on Kharkiv city have resulted in six deaths and at least 16 injuries. The Russian Defence Ministry reported that its air defense systems in Belgorod destroyed several rockets and drones launched by Ukraine. The Kremlin claims the new offensive aims to create a “security zone” to prevent future Ukrainian attacks across its border.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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