Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh have a new commander

By Azernews

Qabil Ashirov

Russian authority has decided to recall Andrey Volkov, the commander of the Russian Peacekeeping contingent [temporarily deployed in Karabakh], and to replace him with Colonel-General Alexander Lentsov, Azernews reports, citing foreign media outlets.

According to the media outlets, the new commander will arrive in the coming days.

Armenian media outlet claims that Colonel-General Alexander Lentsov is 67 years old, was the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces until 2020 and participated in military operations in Syria. And in 2020, he was appointed an advisor to the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Sergey Shouygu, and is one of Shoygu's most trusted persons.

Previously, from November 11, 2020, to September 9, 2021, the contingent's commander was Lieutenant General Rustam Muradov, from September 9 to September 25, 2021 - Major General Mikhail Kosobokov, and from September 25, 2021, to January 12, 2022 - Lieutenant General Gennadiy Anashkin. Andrey Volkov has been appointed as the commander of the peacekeeping contingent since January 12, 2022.