THE GUARDIAN: Moscow promotes Alexander Dvornikov, who led Russian troops in Syria, as it regroups for Donbas battle
The newly appointed general in command of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine is likely to usher in a fresh round of “crimes and brutality” against civilians, the US has said.
Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser in Washington, said the appointment of Alexander Dvornikov as theatre commander of Russian forces in Ukraine could not disguise the strategic failure of Vladimir Putin’s war so far. “Ukraine will never be subjugated to Russia; it doesn’t matter which general President Putin tries to appoint,” he told CNN.
Dvornikov’s appointment follows the withdrawal of Russian forces from around the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Dvornikov, 60, came to prominence at the head of Russian troops in Syria in 2015-16, when there was particularly brutal bombardment of rebel-held areas, including civilian populations, in Aleppo.
Sullivan said Dvornikov’s promotion would lead to more atrocities. “This particular general has a résumé that includes brutality against civilians in other theatres – in Syria – and we can expect more of the same” in Ukraine, he said.
“This general will just be another author of crimes and brutality against Ukrainian civilians, and the United States is determined to do all that we can to support the Ukrainians as they resist him and the forces that he commands.” » | in Kyiv and Ed Pilkington in New York | Sunday, April 10, 2022
