Moscow has named Colonel General Alexander Chayko as the new commander in chief of Russia’s Aerospace Forces. Chayko’s biographical entry on the Defense Ministry’s website shows the appointment took effect in May.
As early as May 5, RBC and the pro-war blogger Fighterbomber reported, citing sources, that Chayko had been selected to lead the Aerospace Forces. The reports circulated widely in Russian media, yet officials in Moscow declined to confirm or deny them.
From 2019 to 2021, Chayko led Russia’s forces in Syria before taking command of the Eastern Military District. In 2022, he oversaw Russia’s push toward Kyiv, during which units under his command carried out mass killings of civilians in the region.
Chayko is the third commander of Russia’s Aerospace Forces since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. His predecessors were Sergei Surovikin and Viktor Afzalov.
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