The case raises questions about Defense Minister Šoigu’s position and Putin’s ability to curb power struggles, writes Russia correspondent Heikki Heiskanen.
Heikki Heiskanen
MOSCOW The dark green uniform of the Ministry of Defense behind the glass of the “aquarium” is a rare sight. An aquarium is a cubicle where detained defendants are placed in Russian courtrooms.
On Wednesday, the Deputy Minister of Defense, known for his luxurious lifestyle, was in the booth of Basmannyi’s courtroom in Moscow Timur IvanovMinister of Defense Sergei Shoigun a close ally and protégé.
Just the day before, Ivanov had sat in a meeting of the Defense Ministry’s collegium. Now he was in custody hearing charges of corruption.
It is the highest-profile corruption case during Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Ivanov is accused of accepting a particularly large bribe when awarding contracts to the Ministry of Defense.
In the ministry, Ivanov was responsible for real estate and construction projects. Ivanov was known as one of Russia’s richest siloviki, as power holders connected to the security services and armed forces are appointed in Russia.
Investigative journalism publication Projekt told in 2019 from the minister’s family’s elite properties. Also an opposition politician To Alexei Navalny FBK Foundation has published revelations about the holdings of the Ivanov family.
Among other things, Ivanov oversaw the construction of the main church of the armed forces and the nationalist amusement park Park Patriot.
Ivanov was involved, among other things, in the construction projects of the city of Mariupol. Russia practically destroyed the city when it captured it from the Ukrainian forces, so the reconstruction project is an important image project for the Russian leadership.
Ivanov’s indictment is a blow to Defense Minister Šoigu. Šoigu has appeared in public, but he has not commented on the fate of his subordinate.
Ivanov joined Šoigu’s team in 2012. At that time, Šoigu was the governor of the Moscow region surrounding the capital, and Ivanov became the deputy prime minister of the government of the Moscow region. When Šoigu was appointed Minister of Defense, Ivanov followed him to the Ministry, first as the head of its construction company Oboronstroi, and then as Deputy Minister of Defense.
Ivanov’s arrest immediately raised speculation about power struggles in the power elite. There have been attempts to sway Šoigu from his position earlier during the war.
Journalist Andrei Pertsev write On the Riddle website, which specializes in Russia analysis, that Shoigu’s main opponent is considered to be the head of the Rosgvardija of the Russian National Guard Viktor Zolotov.
Wagner mercenary company founder, businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin tried to overthrow Shoigu, whom he blamed for Russia’s poor military success.
This struggle ended favorably for Šoigu in that Prigožin, who had led his mercenaries into a military rebellion, lost the game and died in a suspicious plane crash in August of last year.
Shoigu’s position has since been strengthened by the improvement of the military success of the Russian forces.
It could be that his rival in power circles began to fear that Shoigu would become too strong and launched a criminal investigation against Ivanov in order to catch Shoigu.
This does not mean that Šoigu’s game has been played yet.
Vladimir Putin after the inauguration of the fifth term, some changes in the board are expected. It has been assumed that Shoigu will keep his position, because Putin does not like to change his loyal subordinates.
Ivanov’s corruption charge still makes a dent in Shoigu’s prestige: he was unable to protect his ally.
It also raises the question of whether Putin is able to keep power struggles within the elite under control. Putin has acted as a last-ditch settler of disputes. Now the power struggle seems to have spilled out into the open.
Ivanov’s case reminds me of the Minister of Economic Development Alexey Ulyukaev a case that also shakes the Russian elite. Ulyukayev was arrested in 2016 on charges of demanding a bribe from the state oil company Rosneft. Ulyukayev had become an influential director of Rosneft Igor Sechin’s to the teeth.
Ivanov’s situation is different in that Ulyukaev did not have a patron like Shoigu in the administration.
In the case of those formed within the administration a struggle between rival clans, Ivanov’s case may not be the last move in the game.
The Kremlin may soon have another difficult personnel issue on its hands. Leader of Chechnya in North Caucasus Ramzan Kadyrov may be seriously ill.
If the Novaja Gazeta Europa publication information They are right about Kadyrov’s serious pancreatic damage, behind the scenes they are probably working hard so that the question of Kadyrov’s successor does not become a new powder keg.