Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu replaced the commanders in two military districts on January 23, RBC reports, citing a source close to the Defense Ministry.
It should be noted that Sergey Kuzovlev has been the head of the SMO since December 13 last year. In the period from November 2020 to February 2021, he commanded a group of troops of the Russian Armed Forces in Syria. Before that, he was the commander of the units of the SMO and the Southern Military District. Yevgeny Nikiforov has been the first deputy commander of the troops of the Eastern Military District since 2020, and before that he was the commander of the troops of the Eastern Military District.