Russian President Putin appoints new commander for Ukraine war

Officials told CNN, army general Alexander Dvornikov, commander of the Southern Military District of Russiahas been appointed commander of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.

“The situation is getting worse and Russia sees the need to do something different,” the European official said. According to the official, a new commander with extensive combat experience could bring a level of coordination to an offensive that is expected to focus on the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine, rather than on multiple fronts.

Mr. Dvornikov, 60 years old, was the first commander of the Russian military operation in Syria, after President Vladimir Putin sent troops there in September 2015 to support the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. During Dvornikov’s command in Syria from September 2015 to June 2016, Russian aircraft supported the Assad regime and its allies in besieging the rebel-held eastern city of Aleppo. Syrian government forces retook Aleppo in December 2016.

Russian forces have used a similar Syrian approach in parts of Ukraine, attacking in major cities such as the port city of Mariupol. Ukraine. “We will see how well that works,” said the European official. Russian doctrine, Russian tactics remain mostly the same as they have been since the war in Afghanistan. They do things the same old way.”

Military analysts and US officials familiar with intelligence assessments predict that the goal of the Russian generals is to make tangible progress on the battlefield before Victory Day 9.5. European officials describe this as a “self-imposed deadline” that could lead the Russians to make more mistakes. But that also has the potential to prompt Russian forces to take more drastic action.

The designation of a new overall commander for Russia’s war in Ukraine could be an attempt to create a more coherent strategy. CNN previously reported that Russia has no overall command for the operation in Ukraine, which means that units from various Russian military districts have been operating without coordination and sometimes with the intent overlap, according to two US defense officials.

Previously, the US had assessed that President Putin would probably name a general whose forces are operating in southern Ukraine because that is where the Russians have gained more control, in contrast to the efforts of the Russian Federation. Russia besieges Kiev and cities in northern Ukraine – which Russia recently withdrew from these areas.

On April 8, the General Staff of Ukraine said that the forces of Russia has completed its withdrawal from the Sumy region to the north, while continuing to build up forces in eastern Ukraine.