Second Russian Defense Sector Bigwig Dies in Two Days
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The former commander-in-chief of Russia’s ground forces died in a military hospital earlier this week—the second bigwig in the country’s military industrial complex to die in just two days.
They are just the latest senior Russia military or political elites to drop dead unexpectedly in recent months.
Alexei Maslov, a retired army general, was serving as a special representative of military-technical cooperation for Uralvagonzavod, Russia’s largest tank manufacturer, when he died “unexpectedly” last Saturday, the company announced in a statement.
No cause of death was given.
Maslov, who was appointed as Russia’s military representative to NATO in 2008, died just two days after Vladimir Putin abruptly canceled his first visit to Uralvagonzavod since 2019.
The Russian leader was expected to fly into Yekaterinburg last week before heading to Nizhny Tagil to meet with staffers at the tank factory, where workers have been enduring 12-hour days, six days a week due to fulfill orders for the war against Ukraine.
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Local authorities in Yekaterinburg went to ridiculous lengths for his impending visit, reportedly banning drivers of local public transportation from letting passengers out anywhere near Putin’s motorcade. Authorities in Nizhny Tagil reportedly forbid student drivers from using the streets.
But then Putin’s visit was abruptly canceled at the last minute, local media reported.
Maslov’s death came just a day after Alexander Buzakov, the director general of Admiralty Shipyards, died suddenly and “tragically” from unknown causes.
Buzakov, who St. Petersburg Gov. Alexander Beglov credited with making sure Russia’s military was “prepared for confrontation with the West,” had previously told Russian state media the shipyard was preparing to fulfill a Defense Ministry order for diesel-powered submarines capable of launching Kalibr cruise missiles—the same ones Moscow has been using for months to launch attacks on Ukraine.
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