Translated material
Kuroyedov “ate” Komoyedov
Naval commanders fight - the fleet rusts
Public scandals between Russian military leaders seem to be going from being extraordinary to becoming commonplace. And they are resolved only by the resignation of one of the conflicting parties. Just recently it was necessary to “separate” Marshal Sergeev and Army General Kvashnin, who publicly insulted each other. Before this scandal had time to subside, another began - between the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Vladimir Komoyedov, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Vladimir Kuroyedov. Yesterday it ended with a presidential decree on the resignation of Admiral Komoyedov. There is already a joke going around in the Black Sea Fleet: “Kuroyedov “ate” Komoyedov.”It is not known for certain when and why hostility arose between the military leaders. But the public conflict began with the fact that the military medical commission recognized Komoyedov as partially fit for military service. The admiral was forbidden to serve as a sailor, which was not required of the fleet commander. Moreover, the doctors allowed him to go to sea for up to three months. But the commander in chief decided that the fleet commander needed to be changed. However, Kuroyedov himself could not fire Komoyedov: the commander of the fleet is the nomenklatura of the president. Therefore, Mr. Kuroyedov first temporarily suspended the commander by his order. And the corresponding presentation went upstairs.
And here something happened that was considered impossible in the Russian army until recently. Komoyedov, in accordance with the norms of the rule of law, filed a complaint with the Novorossiysk Garrison Court. A civil case was initiated, in which Kuroyedov was recognized as the defendant. Komoyedov continued to command the Black Sea Fleet, Kuroyedov accumulated irritation and made plans to eliminate his obstinate subordinate.
At the same time, Komoyedov publicly stated that he was ready to withdraw the complaint if the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy decided not to transfer him to the reserve. For some time, the commander-in-chief was also ready to bargain, offering (through personnel officers) to his opponent the position of head of the Naval Academy in St. Petersburg. But the admiral, who had his mouth between his teeth, considered this offer humiliating and refused.
The conflict between the two admirals has reached the point where the principle of unity of command, without which the armed forces are simply unthinkable, is being ignored. Practical issues of the fleet's combat readiness receded into the background. In August, Commander-in-Chief Kuroedov decided not to allow ships of the Black Sea Fleet into the Mediterranean Sea: they say, it is necessary to save fuel. Komoyedov responded by saying that the fleet was ready and there was enough fuel. But since this issue is being decided by the commander-in-chief, the gathering-campaign that the sailors had been waiting for was eventually transformed into two small exercises.
It became clear that the grappling admirals had to be separated. The President chose to fire Komoyedov. Perhaps Putin’s special attitude towards Kuroyedov played a role here: the president even came to defend the naval admiral’s Ph.D. thesis, and after the tragedy with the Kursk nuclear submarine, contrary to the predictions of many military personnel, he did not punish the commander-in-chief.
However, the point is not even about two admirals and not about the combat readiness of the Black Sea Fleet. Today, tens of thousands of officers are suing the Ministry of Defense for unpaid rations, clothing and combat allowances. They are suing their superiors, rear officials and commanders. They are suing with such ferocity that it is time to talk not about the social protection of military personnel, but about protecting them from each other. There is mute talk in the army about such conflicts even at the very top. It is possible that soon we will have to say “break” to another pair of very high-ranking military men.
Needless to say, internal discord in the army and navy not only does not contribute to their combat effectiveness, but also makes all the authorities’ efforts to carry out military reform meaningless.
And Admiral Komoyedov was removed in the best Byzantine-Soviet traditions: the sad news, transmitted by military telegraph, overtook the admiral at sea, where he was directing the firing of cruise missiles from a ship...
The next court hearing in the case “Komyedov v. Kuroyedov” is scheduled for October 14.
Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov is 52 years old, he graduated from the Higher Naval School, the Naval Academy and the Military Academy of the General Staff. He served in the Baltic and Northern fleets, went through all the steps of the naval hierarchy. Since July 1998 he has been commander of the Black Sea Fleet.
Vice Admiral Vladimir Masorin, who commanded the Caspian Flotilla, was appointed the new commander of the Black Sea Fleet . He is 55 years old, his biography is similar to that of his predecessor. Except that he didn’t take the Russian President for a ride on a boat during the Caspian gathering expedition.