Top Russian military officer put in charge of Ukraine action

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV
Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s top military officer has been put in charge of troops fighting in Ukraine on Wednesday. It’s a move that appears to reflect the Kremlin’s dissatisfaction with the current leadership and flaws in the military’s performance. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday that Gen. Valery Gerasimov was named the new commander of the unified group of forces in Ukraine. He is the chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces. The previous commander is Gen. Sergei Surovikin. He demoted to become Gerasimov’s deputy along with two other generals. The reshuffle appears to signal that Russian President Vladimir Putin still has trust in his top military leaders who have faced broad criticism for the troops performance in the conflict.