Putin reshuffles top Russian military officers

President Vladimir Putin on Friday reshuffled the nation's top military brass following the defense minister's ouster and instructed the new top military officer to be friendlier to Russia's defense industries.                      

Putin's advice to Col. Gen. Valery Gerasimov, appointed the new chief of the armed forces' General Staff, appeared to shed more light on the reasons for the ouster of Russia's powerful Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov earlier this week.                   

While Putin linked the ouster to a probe into the alleged military corruption, most experts believe that Serdyukov was sacked because of an intensifying behind-the-scenes battle for the distribution of 20 trillion rubles ($635 billion) that the Kremlin plans to spend on buying new weapons through 2020.                           

Serdyukov demanded higher quality and cheaper prices from the military industry, often refusing to sign new contracts for months.

He criticized arms makers for continuing to produce Soviet-era designs instead of developing new weapons, angering the industry leaders with strong Kremlin connections.                                          

Under Serdyukov, the military purchased amphibious assault vessels from France, bought Israeli drones, Italian armored vehicles and other foreign weapons.                                                  

Gerasimov replaces Serdyukov's loyalist Gen. Nikolai Makarov. The 57-year old Gerasimov is a career military officer who graduated from a Soviet tank academy and previously served as the commander of the Central Military District, a job that made him responsible for Red Square military parades.             



AP