Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu removed Baltic Fleet Commander Viktor Kravchuk and Fleet Chief of Staff Sergei Popov from their posts for omissions in service. On Thursday, it was reported that, following the top command of the fleet, about fifty admirals and senior naval officers also lost their posts. However, there is no official confirmation of this information yet.
"According to the results of the audit and discussion at the board, the commander of the Baltic Fleet, the chief of staff of the fleet and a number of other officials for serious omissions in combat training, as well as distortion in the reports of the real state of affairs, were removed from their duties by the Minister of Defense. They were submitted for removal from their posts and dismissal - from military service," the press service and information department of the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement following the offsite meeting of the department's collegium, which took place on June 29 in Kubinka near Moscow.
"Another number of officials" - these are at least fifty high-ranking officers of the fleet headquarters, commanders of squadrons, brigades and military units in the ranks of admirals and captains of the first rank. There has not been such a mass dismissal of officers in the Russian Armed Forces for a long time, a military expert notes:
- First of all, it should be noted that something unprecedented in the history of modern Russia really happened. Something similar happened in 1987, when the leaders of the air defense forces were also fired en masse after Matthias Rust sat down on Red Square in Moscow. That is, it can be assumed that something comparable to such a humiliating defeat that took place in 1987 happened. And they hid it from us.
- We, mere mortals, can only guess about the true reasons for such a mass resignation. What are the versions?
When a person is appointed from above, he can break loose, living constantly in this atmosphere of constant lies.
- It is possible that Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu simply lost his temper. It happens to people who didn't grow up within a certain system. In order to adequately perceive the amount of lies that exist in the Armed Forces, one must gradually go through the entire ladder of military positions and ranks. And when a person is appointed from above, he can break loose, constantly living in this atmosphere of constant lies. So it happened with Serdyukov (Former Minister of Defense Anatoly Serdyukov. - RS), which, as we know, periodically exploded and began to yell obscenities at subordinates. I do not rule out that the same thing happened to Shoigu, although this does not seem very likely to me. Still, Sergey Kuzhugetovich is an extremely experienced, without any irony, one of the best managers in Russia, who, for sure, in his thirty years of leadership of various military and paramilitary structures, realizes how much reality differs from the reports of his superiors.
Another option - they decided to arrange some kind of demonstrative flogging in order to rein in the commanders. If this is so, then those who arrange it should understand that such a spanking will not bring any result. The system of relationships that reigns in the Armed Forces is pushing towards a general lie. Sovereigns, from Peter I to Putin, are constantly trying to build this vertical of power, where an honest subordinate reports the truth to his boss, at the risk of being punished. In reality, this does not happen. We need control tools. Tools of public control. It could be an independent press, it could be a parliament, it could be everything that the Russian authorities successfully got rid of and finally got rid of.
It must be shown that the authorities are harsh not only to political opponents
Finally, another version. This is what is now in the pre-election situation from Putin received the command "Fire at the headquarters!". It is necessary to show that the authorities are harsh not only to political opponents, but also to officials who have been at fault. They are already starting a case against a person close to Nikita Mikhalkov, they are already imprisoning various governors ... Is everything in order in the Armed Forces? Here, too, someone needs to be punished. I do not rule out that this is also a possible option.
- Fontanka.ru, citing a high-ranking source in the Russian Ministry of Defense, reports that the purge of the ranks was preceded by an unscheduled check of the state of affairs in the fleet, carried out by officers of the General Staff. The reason for it was allegedly the accident of a Russian submarine in the Baltic Sea in April 2016. Then, according to Polish media reports (later officially refuted by the Russian Ministry of Defense), the Baltic Fleet submarine collided with a Polish military vessel, most likely a reconnaissance ship, and received serious damage that could lead to a repetition of the tragic history of the Kursk. The command then tried to hide the incident from the higher leadership, which was the reason for a tough and large-scale inspection. Can you take this version seriously?
- Again, there are more than one such stories, let's be frank. And it seems to me that if this somehow terribly outraged Sergei Shoigu, then this indignation is feigned. He must understand how the command system works in the Russian power structures in general, and in the Ministry of Defense in particular. Listen, in 2001 they hid from Putin as much as they could the story of the Kursk. Why be surprised?
- Immediately after the resignation of the command of the Baltic Fleet, information appeared that the interim commander could become Sergey Eliseev, before serving in the Russian army, former Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In Ukraine, he was charged with desertion, high treason, encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine, assistance to the activities of a terrorist organization, and waging an aggressive war. Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that he hates traitors. How can such a possible appointment be explained?
- As far as I know, the Armed Forces are not enthusiastic about those who transferred from the Ukrainian army to the Russian one. Another question is that traitors are those who go over to the side of the enemy, and those who go over to us are not traitors at all. I think that if such a semi-appointment took place, then it was agreed with Vladimir Putin,” notes Alexander Golts.
However, the appointment of Sergei Eliseev as acting commander of the Baltic Fleet did not take place. When the material was being prepared, it became known that Vice Admiral Alexander Nosatov, former chief of staff of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and current head of the Kuznetsov Naval Academy.
Another version of the mass resignations in the Baltic Fleet is the low combat readiness of its ships. These are the four newest project 20380 corvettes. The lead ship of this type, the Steregushchy, was received by the fleet in 2007; However, none of these corvettes over the years has not gone into combat service in key regions of the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. However, the well-known St. Petersburg seascape writer, captain of the second rank, does not see a tragedy in these mass resignations:
The Baltic Fleet, which was nicknamed the "slop fleet" in the 90s, will turn into a "fighting fleet"
- I heard not very pleasant things about the main character. It was necessary to shoot Viktor Kravchuk even earlier. After all, it was clear that the person could not cope. But in principle, all this is connected, as I suspect, with industry, with the adoption of new technology, its development. New technology must be accepted correctly, worked out correctly, and all the shortcomings that are found in it must be eliminated in the course of the work of the state commission. If we turn a blind eye to all this, then the result is approximately the same resignations. The new appointed person with his duties, I think, will cope. And the Baltic Fleet, which received the nickname "slop fleet" in the 90s, will turn into a "fighting fleet", since Europe is "rebellious" here.
- Captain 1st rank, head of the All-Russian Fleet Support Movement Mikhail Nenashev in an interview with Gazeta.ru, he expressed his extreme surprise at the resignation of Viktor Kravchuk. He, in particular, said: “This is amazing news both for me and for the representatives of the fleet, who are well aware of the state of affairs in the fleets of the Russian Navy. Viktor Petrovich Kravchuk is known primarily for the fact that, while still commander of the Caspian Flotilla, which he accepted in a problematic state, brought it to such a level that the flotilla performed all combat missions.One of the successfully completed tasks is known not only in Russia, but throughout the world - the ships of the Caspian flotilla for the first time in the history of the country and the Russian fleet launched missile strikes in more than a thousand kilometers from the Caspian region against terrorist targets in Syria. Such combat readiness is the result of Kravchuk's command." How can you comment on this statement?
There was something that is not a state secret, but is that rubbish that they don’t want to take out of the hut
- This is not the merit of the commander, but the merit of those people who serve the Caliber missiles - the creators of the Caliber, the receivers of the Caliber and the exploiters of the Caliber. That is, those people who are at the level of a ship commander, and not at the level of a division commander or a division or brigade commander. That is, those who directly prepare weapons. I do not think that this is entirely the merit of Viktor Kravchuk. And the fact that it was filmed is simply not filmed in our country. This means that there was something that is not a state secret, but is that rubbish that they do not want to take out of the hut. Lor was not taken out, but 50 officers were taken out of the hut. It is possible, therefore, to fight for discipline in the Navy. I think they changed it correctly, - Alexander Pokrovsky believes.
Kaliningrad journalist Ilya Stulov told Fontanka.ru about the incredible conditions in which officers of the Baltic Fleet and their families lived in Kaliningrad. And the chairman of the Kaliningrad branch of the International Ecological Public Organization "Green Front" Oleg Ivanov in an interview with Radio Liberty, he recalled, for example, how illegal amber mining took place on the territory of the Chkalovsk airfield of the Baltic Fleet military aviation:
On the territory of military unit 30886, a number of violations with illegal mining of amber were revealed
– Since 2013, in the course of our monitoring in the Kaliningrad region, we have periodically identified certain violations of environmental legislation either on the lands of the Ministry of Defense or at facilities managed by certain structures of the Baltic Fleet. In particular, during the construction in 2014 of the mooring wall at the base of the Baltic Fleet in the city of Baltiysk, we identified violations related to waste disposal. At the same time, the prosecutor's office of the Baltic Fleet took measures against the developer Spetsstroy.
Already this year, we received information that at the construction site of the Chkalovsk military airfield on the territory of military unit 30886, a number of violations were revealed with illegal amber mining, including the destruction of green spaces. There was another similar case at the beginning of this year, when an operation was carried out on the lands of the Ministry of Defense in the forest area of the valuable natural complex of the Celau swamp to retrieve an aircraft from the times of the Great Patriotic War. And all this happened, unfortunately, with great violations of environmental legislation - several dozen trees were destroyed. We must pay tribute to the prosecutor's office of the Baltic Fleet, which very quickly responded to our signals. Apparently, a certain critical mass of such signals has accumulated. And they, I think, could also play some role in the resignation of the leadership of the fleet, - says Oleg Ivanov.
All these speculations about "purges" and almost "repressions" in the Baltic Fleet are nonsense
The investigation can be continued. Apparently, indeed, a critical mass, which is completely unbearable even for corrupt officials of the Ministry of Defense, has accumulated in the activities of the commander of the Baltic Fleet, which had to resort to mass layoffs. But they, however, have not yet been officially confirmed.
Moreover, as a source in the Main Staff of the Russian Navy told the Interfax news agency, there will be no mass dismissal of senior officers in the Baltic Fleet. “All these speculations about “purges” and almost “repressions” in the Baltic Fleet are nonsense. Only a few will be presented for dismissal. The rest, who have failed in their duties or made serious miscalculations, will be transferred from the Baltic to other fleets. There they will continue to serve including in lower positions," he said.
This is reported by the Russian edition of Forbes. He was tipped to head the state corporation for the development of the Far East, which is now being formed, which he himself proposed to create.
Sergei Shoigu will leave the government after the presidential elections. This is reported by the Russian edition of Forbes, which refers to three unnamed sources. Government officials and big businessmen on the sidelines are talking about the imminent resignation of the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. Assistant Minister Irina Adrianov declined to comment on the information about the departure of the minister. Forbes will read to Sergei Shoigu the post of head of the state corporation for the development of the Far East, which is now being formed, which he himself proposed to create.
In turn, Izvestia writes that the initiative of the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations was supported by almost all departments, except for the Ministry of Finance.
Shoigu himself first spoke about the idea of establishing a corporation for the development of the Far East on January 22 at a meeting with Vladimir Putin. The Minister proposes to give it the authority to manage subsoil resources and create a separate Infrastructure Fund for the Far East. According to First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, the project will require more than 1 trillion rubles by 2025.
According to Izvestia, the idea was supported by the Ministry of Regional Development, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Health. Only the Ministry of Finance opposed another state corporation, as they believe that it is impossible to calculate the effect for the budget from its creation. The ministry notes that there is already a Far East Development Fund, created by Vnesheconombank. In addition, from 2013, the distribution of state funds should be carried out under separate targeted programs, and not through state corporations.
Sergei Shoigu, 57, has been head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations since 1994. He is the most popular cabinet minister among Russians. Despite this, there are certain grounds for assumptions about the resignation of Shoigu. Mikhail Vinogradov, President of the Petersburg Politics Foundation, comments:
“Sergey Shoigu evoked complex, zealous relationships among a variety of Russian leaders. I think that Vladimir Putin, to a large extent, as the most popular, by and large, minister. You may recall that in 2000 Shoigu received the post of Deputy Prime Minister, and then very quickly lost it. It was evidence of a certain jealousy. You can recall that Shoigu periodically disappeared from television screens and it also looked like a reaction to the growth of his popularity. Little was known about the personal relationship between Medvedev and Shoigu, Putin and Shoigu. It is clear that both sides had reasons to tense up, but all the same, these conflicts did not come out into the public plane.”
Opinion of the Director General of the National Energy Security Fund Konstantin Simonov:
“Now, in fact, no one knows which figures will enter the new government and which will not. These are all approximate guesses. As for compatibility with Shoigu, this is already the tenth issue. Why? Because everyone knows perfectly well that Sergei Kuzhugetovich is the record holder for staying in Russian governments, who worked in the cabinets of ministers for 20 years. What are his communication and compatibility skills? It is quite obvious that from the point of view of personal compatibility with Medvedev, Shoigu has no problems.”
Russian Forbes also writes that key figures in the Putin government who will not work with Prime Minister Medvedev will receive good appointments. Specific names are not named.
In conditions when incomes are falling, the elite begins to redistribute what is available, excluding superfluous people from their circle. An undisguised inter-elite war is going on in Russia, the main defendants of which are the first persons of the country - Vladimir Putin and Sergei Shoigu, moreover, on opposite sides of the barricades ...
The presidential elections are approaching, which, from the point of view of the Presidential Administration, do not cause any surprises or unexpected results, there is complete stability there. However, within the Russian elite, a serious confrontation has matured and overripe, which threatens not only the current political system of Russia, but also the integrity of the state.
The point is that the conflict between the old oligarchic groups, the center of gravity of which was the "Yeltsin Family" and the "Petersburg" ones, reached the level when open and unexpected actions were taken from both sides.
It would seem that two unrelated events turn out to be a direct consequence of each other and are just one of the rounds of inter-elite confrontation. The first event was the defeat of PMC Wagner, the real owner of which is considered to be "Putin's chef" Yevgeny Prigozhin, which took place on February 7, and the next day, Alexei Navalny's exposure about Oleg Deripaska, Sergei Prikhodko and Nastya Rybka comes out. Let's try to figure out what the real reason for what happened.
This is what kind of mess Prigozhin made
The interests of Yevgeny Prigozhin in Syria fit well into the logic of ordinary business. About two years ago, some sources wrote that Yevgeny Prigozhin gained access to the extraction and sale of minerals, in particular oil, in Syria. In the conditions of the war, the Syrian authorities provided the businessman with the territory with the words: "you can take it, take it." They say that Prigozhin's structures began to participate in the war even before the official entry of the Russian army there.
PMCs, that's why PMCs, that is, a private structure designed to carry out purely corporate tasks within the given framework. Prigozhin still has phosphates in Syria and some oil, which was given to him as payment for his help in the fight against terrorism. Accordingly, military companies such as the one that bears the name of Wagner are engaged in the protection of all this good. On March 24, 2017, an investigation by RBC was published: “How a “media factory” grew out of a “troll factory”, where it was described in detail about Yevgeny Prigozhin’s connection not only with the Wagner PMC, but also with the “troll factory” - a scandalous set of information publications, involved in promoting the policies of Vladimir Putin on the Internet.
On February 14, 2018, the Dozhd TV channel slightly lifted the veil on the organizational structure of Prigozhin's military company. It is reported that the employer of the volunteers was Europolis LLC, registered in 2016 in Krasnogorsk. We find this company on the Rusprofile website:
And the company has one international representative office. Guess which country? That's right, in Syria!
Now to the rout on February 7th. According to American data, they informed the Russian command about the upcoming attack and, apparently, received an affirmative answer that there were no Russian troops in the advancing convoy. Naturally, the one who responded to the American warning knew perfectly well that the advancing convoy was completely formed from Russian citizens and people from Donbass and were fighters from several Prigozhin PMCs.
And now let's imagine that the one who came up with this operation, who sent the PMC fighters, did not coordinate it with the Russian command in any way. It can not be! According to survivors, they were even promised air support from the Russian aviation group at the Khmeimim base. And why were they sure of this support? Yes, because they have already gone through more than one such operation together with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, where they have always acted together, coming to the rescue and helping where necessary. Still, their, after all, compatriots!
And then there was a demonstrative defeat, using all the capabilities of the American armed forces. The operation even involved B-52 strategic bombers, manufactured in the middle of the last century. All details were recorded, all data was carefully stored. It can be seen that the Americans were prepared specifically for the demonstrative and most severe defeat of PMCs.
Shoigu and the US at the same time in Syrian history?
What are the implications of this story? From the point of view of international law, what happened and was recorded is mercenarism and the organization of an illegal armed formation with elements of international terrorism in its purest form. It is very likely that just before the elections, the Americans will issue an ultimatum to the Russian authorities - extradite Prigozhin or publish the Syrian history in the widest possible way. Fortunately, they have everything - photos, video recording of the battle itself and the consequences, lists, names. And this, against the background of an extremely vague, looks like the reaction of the Russian authorities, denying everything and everyone.
There can be only one conclusion here - the Americans would not have been able to prepare such a “gift” for Putin without the participation of the Russian Ministry of Defense and Sergei Shoigu personally. That's when Putin's most important and open betrayal took place, with the most negative international consequences.
However, Shoigu did not act alone here. In fact, it was the “Family” who took this desperate step, and the fact that high international connections are used means that the “Family” no longer has the tools within the country to influence the situation. And the situation is very complicated. Recently, the extraordinary rise of Igor Sechin has already led to the fact that one after another the oligarchs who emerged from the Yeltsin era are suffering losses. This is Prokhorov, who was actually forced to leave Russia by selling his assets for next to nothing, Potanin, Deripaska, Vekselberg. Sechin, most likely, is faced with the task of squeezing out these "extra" oligarchs from Russia and redistributing assets among his own, such as Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The fact is that under the conditions of American sanctions, the "Family" could not agree on their reduction through their Western connections. In the Trump administration, the Family had no connections. Therefore, Igor Sechin, together with Sergei Chemezov, continued to put pressure on the old oligarchs in order to steal capital.
Thus, to date, two groups have been formed, ready to fight each other. This is the "Family", which includes Tatyana Yumasheva with her husband Valentin, Anatoly Chubais, Oleg Deripaska, Sergei Prikhodko, Sergei Yastrzhembsky, Sergei Shoigu, Sergei Sobyanin, Alfa Group (Mikhail Fridman and Peter Aven).
At the forefront of the confrontation with this group is the Ozero cooperative as a whole, but mainly Sergey Chemezov and Igor Sechin, who do not understand why it is worth tolerating the “Family” if the sanctions only increase, and they do nothing to weaken them. This group just includes Prigogine.
Vladimir Putin, who has always been neutral and arbiter in such disputes, this time tends to support his own, "Petersburg".
In this light, the pitiful show that Navalny put on on February 8 is most likely a spontaneous impulsive reaction of Sechin, who had all the material collected a long time ago and was just waiting in the wings. Navalny acted here as a mouthpiece, nothing more.
From the point of view of the United States, on February 7, it was not the extermination of PMCs, but the collection of information that allows them to take a tougher position in any negotiations and dictate their terms, regardless of any “laughing Iskanders”. As a famous blogger writes:
“The meaning is not in Prigogine himself. The point is to rehearse the future extradition of Putin's entourage, and later of himself. According to the same scenario through an ultimatum that will be put forward to his successor. In a sense, this is the same scenario in which the Yugoslavs betrayed Milosevic - through a tough ultimatum and an offer that cannot be refused.
In politics (however, as in many areas of relations), a threat always looks preferable to direct action. The very fact that you can do something already allows you to set conditions. In this sense, a scenario where threats will reinforce one or another ultimatum is always preferable.
Is a military coup possible in Russia?
It is necessary to add a few words about what the army is in the current conditions. The army is the only structure in Russia capable of carrying out a real change of power within one day. This is a military coup and the introduction of martial law on the territory of Russia with all the ensuing consequences. And the fact that the Ministry of Defense can collude with the Americans suggests that if they receive "consent" from Washington to such a military coup, no one and nothing will stop them.
Of course, these are extreme measures that even the most radical US administration is unlikely to agree to. The country of Russia is too big and this idea can turn out to be too uncontrollable. But the events that have taken place make it clear what the people of the "Family" are ready to go for in order to maintain their power, influence and income on the territory of Russia. And there are not too many options left to President Vladimir Putin under these conditions.
And yet, the main traitor in this story is Sergei Shoigu. No one expected the Minister of Defense that at the most crucial moment he would surrender Putin's interests to the enemy, having separately entered into an agreement with the Americans and indicating where and when to shoot. It is understandable that it will be necessary to draw organizational conclusions, but in fact, the president is now placed in harsh conditions - there is no one to change Shoigu for. All his possible successors, like General S.V. Surovikin, mentioned by us in the previous article, are not just people from the Yeltsin entourage who had merits back in the 90s, but direct proteges of the "Family" who are ready to replace Shoigu if Putin starts personnel permutations. In this sense, Boris Yeltsin's bet on the army, which he made in 1993 during the execution of the Supreme Council, still makes itself felt in the form of the army's loyalty to the business interests of the "Family" and the oligarchs close to it.
When the geopolitical situation dictates the need to strengthen the defense capability of Russia, President Vladimir Putin demands to consolidate efforts in this direction, and Minister Sergei Shoigu struggles to modernize the army and protect our borders, there are those who are indifferent to state tasks. In late August, PASMI published an article about the wife of a high-ranking FSB officer who became head of the Department of the Ministry of Defense after the disruption of Putin's program to create "scientific companies." However, after the release of the material, it turned out that Natalia Krasavtseva failed not the only state contract, but the fraud schemes in this story are much larger than it seemed. About billions, real estate in Italy, patrons in the person of Deputy Sergei Shoigu and much more - read in the new journalistic investigation.
“Come visit us in Sergiev Posad: for three years we couldn’t get through to the top about the mess at the construction site of the ‘scientific company’, and after your publication, checks began immediately. We will tell you why no one moved in the Ministry of Defense before. All the evidence is on hand, ”the investigation began from this call from former servicemen, the beginning of which is set out in the article.
A visit to a town near Moscow revealed the story Natalia Pyataeva-Krasavtseva in a new light: a high position in the Ministry of Defense after the failure of military contracts, apparently, was not a personnel mistake, but a real reward, because bad construction with good funding is always extremely profitable for someone.
The first thing that PASMI managed to find out in Sergiev Posad was that Pyataeva and her company Vesta were personally invited to the construction of a special facility. This can be proven by simply checking the dates.
Recall that the agreement and 152 million rubles between the "Main Directorate for the Arrangement of Troops" (GUOV) and Vesta for the overhaul of buildings and structures of military unit 14118 (barracks, club and canteen) was signed November 26, 2015. The contractor was allegedly chosen in the form of tenders among small and medium-sized businesses. Applications were considered November 24, 2015. However, already October 14, 2015, as follows from the telegram transmitted to PASMI, the military was ordered to let Vesta employees into the restricted area.
And the director of Vesta began to invite subcontractors to Sergiev Posad since September. The PASMI editorial office was told about this by an individual entrepreneur Yuri Matasov, whose team worked for Pyataeva at the facilities of military unit 14118. Even the time sheet has been preserved, the first entry is from 10/31/15, and the signature under the document belongs to the chief engineer of Vesta LLC, Mr. Poleshchuk.
Thus, it turns out that a private company entered a guarded military facility long before the appearance of a state contract - without any papers, legal obligations, responsibility. And this could not happen without instructions from above.
And he was in charge of the construction sector of the military department at that time Timur Ivanov: from 2013 to 2016, he simultaneously headed Oboronstroy JSC and a subsidiary of this company - GUOV. This department was responsible for the construction and repair of housing for the military, barracks, educational buildings, medical institutions of the Ministry of Defense.
Moreover, it is reliably known that it was Ivanov who was instructed to organize the work on the placement of the "scientific company" of nuclear scientists. In a service letter dated July 9, 2015, the corresponding order was signed personally by the Acting Minister of Defense Valery Gerasimov.
Moreover, this issue was under special control: the formation of scientific companies is a project that the Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu personally promised to fulfill the President Vladimir Putin. And the division of nuclear scientists is a completely separate topic.
Reference
Scientific companies are military units deployed in the structure of the Ministry of Defense since 2013. Tasks for the scientific company 12 of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation:
conducting research on the creation and improvement of special weapons and weapons of directed energy;
carrying out tests on the installations of the experimental test base of the 12th Central Research Institute (Central Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation);
creation of technical security systems for facilities of the Russian Ministry of Defense;
improving the means and methods for monitoring nuclear testing abroad;
application of supercomputer technologies.
However, as PASMI wrote earlier, by December 2015, Pyataeva had not completed the repair of facilities in Sergiev Posad, and nuclear scientists, designed to create “supercomputer technologies”, had to live in tents. By the way, the barracks, the club and the canteen are still far from commissioning today.
Photo August 2018
It should be noted that Sergiev Posad was no exception. In total, Vesta signed three government contracts - all with the GUOV. The total is almost 900 million rubles. In addition to the scientific company of nuclear scientists, Pyataeva got the reconstruction of Moscow military camps and the military clinical hospital named after. Vishnevsky in Krasnogorsk. The terms of repairs have been disrupted under absolutely all contracts, and not a single one of them has been closed yet, although funding has been received uninterruptedly and in a timely manner.
In Sergiev Posad, a PASMI representative was told that the inhabitants of the military town were outraged from the very beginning with the course of the overhaul.
“Inside each military unit, a construction headquarters is being created. The problems with Vesta were in full view of everyone. It got to the point that the roof was removed from all three buildings, and for two years - under snow and rain - the objects stood open. Just imagine what happened to the brickwork of an already rotten building during this time. We reported on what was happening to the GUOV and the Construction Department of the Ministry of Defense, but no one wanted to hear about problems at this construction site. The fact that Pyataev was covered by someone from the top of the Ministry of Defense was clear to everyone, ”- said the representative of the central office of the 12th Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, which is responsible for the nuclear complex.
Meanwhile, it was the representatives of the State Administration for the Arrangement of Troops, that is, subordinates of Timur Ivanov, who, under the terms of the contract with the Ministry of Defense, were obliged to monitor the progress of work, which, by the way, included a weekly photo report.
But something, apparently, prevented us from considering the shortcomings in the photographs, since the protracted contracts with Vesta, which declared bankruptcy, were not only not broken, but were transferred in full force to its successor, LLC Vesta Company, with new terms and additional amounts.
The close relationship between Timur Ivanov and Natalya Pyataeva was told by many interlocutors who were related to Vesta to PASMI. More concrete evidence was also found: audio recordings from the office of Natalia Evgenievna, made on the mobile phone of one of the former employees of Vesta, were handed over to the editorial office. All of them are from 2015.
In the first excerpt, a fragment of a telephone conversation of a woman with the voice of Pyataeva was captured on the recorder. She communicates with the interlocutor, whom she calls the head of the GUOV and addresses him as "Timur Vadimovich".
Pyataeva: “Yes, Timur Vadimovich, yes. They did everything at the bath and laundry. Tomorrow they hang bedside tables, screw in light bulbs, stretch ceiling. And that's it - they leave on Friday. Listen, I understand that everything is fine. And I really ... I really love you ... I'm waiting! Bye!"
(hangs up, giggling with some woman (according to a PASMI source - Pyataeva's assistant Oksana Melamud)”.
Pyataeva: (referring to the interlocutor) “Thank God, otherwise I’m already shaking from his calls. Now he will ask: “What is happening in Sergiev Posad? ... And pipets (obscene language) ...”
Pyataeva: " I’ll pay you for your dismantlings now (they curse indistinctly)… You are so smart, so smart! I'll explain to you - the GUOV is calling me and constantly mistrust, constantly. You see, I’m telling you, he won’t even talk, he will send to (x *), and I will forget the department where there is money for my whole, (b *), the rest of my life! ”...
(remark of the contractor - illegible)
Pyataeva: “Nothing is done smartly, you hear, you heard the conversation of Roman ... Vasilchenko [the curator from the GUOV, personally assigned by the Department for the Arrangement of Troops to the objects of Vesta]. I do not a single object with him, I don’t have hemorrhoids with him at all, I have him, (b *) estimates for Sveta [Svetlana Chikhireva - in 2015 the estimator of Vesta LLC], I don’t connect at all (inaudible) he helps me increase the value!”
(arguing with the contractor)
Pyataeva: "I will find a way to deceive you!"
By the way, Vasilchenko Roman Nikolaevich, who, based on the audio recording, helped the owner of Vesta increase the cost of work when drawing up estimates under a state contract, and today works in the structure of the GUOV, overseeing military construction. Vasilchenko refused to answer questions from a PASMI correspondent.
In another fragment of the recording, Natalia Pyataeva complains to her interlocutor about the Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu, the “object” for which her husband “Vova” and “personal people” are building (in 2015, Pyataeva’s common-law husband was Vladimir Salnikov). According to a PASMI source, we are talking about a toilet in the minister's private house.
Pyataeva: “Here he calls me, I swear to you, I have Vova, (*), my husband, who didn’t hold anything heavier than a fountain pen, sits on this (c *), (b *), minister, at his facility, you understand, and that’s all , and he every day (f * t): either dad looked wrong, then mom looked wrong, simply, for free! (W * l), (b *), the whole brain! From my house workers, my personal workers, my personal people, mine! They don’t build my house, they build its object.”
And one more note, which is of interest for drawing up a portrait of a high-ranking official: here we are talking about the repair of a certain object “on Krasnoznamensky”.
Pyataeva: “Three cripples on Krasnoznamensky are making a facade for me. Two floors, (b *) - one, two, and one - below. So they made me, (b *), facade, you understand ?!
Just at that time, the Vesta company was engaged in the repair of military camps (contract No. 2015 / 2-566), where the military investigation department appears in the city of Krasnoznamensk. For its reconstruction from the federal budget was allocated more than 22.5 million rubles.
Another interesting detail: Pyataeva often did not pay the hired workers. And, as it turned out, Timur Ivanov also knew about it. Things got to the point that the territory of the military unit became a training ground for protest rallies of workers who demanded that Vesta repay their debts. The organizer of the actions was Yuri Matasov, the same entrepreneur who came in the fall of 2015 to repair military unit 14118. Pyataeva owed his team of 100 people 2 million rubles.
The administration of the Sergiev Posad district did not coordinate the rallies, and the workers had to go out to single pickets. Just during one of these actions, Timur Ivanov himself arrived at the protracted construction site with a detour.
“Ivanov, when he saw posters demanding to pay off to the workers of Vesta, he simply turned around and left, and then the guys came up to us, as I understood from his guard, they told us not to do nonsense and broke all the posters”, - Yury Matasov described the details of the protest action.
The money was never given to the workers. With his people, the brigadier paid off with funds from his personal savings.
More 50 million rubles of debt from Vesta, which began bankruptcy proceedings, today a number of creditor firms are trying to return through the courts. In the Moscow Arbitration Court, creditors are trying to prove that the bankruptcy procedure of the company is fictitious and covers the withdrawal of funds that relate to 2015-2017, and Pyataeva-Krasavtseva is called the main interested person in financial fraud. However, judge Olga Avdonina rejects all applications that point to the role of the current state official in the deliberate bankruptcy of the company, since she left the company before the moment of obvious financial problems.
Meanwhile, PASMI got materials proving that the federal employee remained in touch with her commercial enterprises even after she got a post in the Ministry of Defense.
The career take-off of the entrepreneur followed the promotion of her old acquaintance, Timur Ivanov. In 2016, he was appointed Deputy Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, gaining even more authority in the construction and overhaul of military facilities. And in February 2017, Natalia Pyataeva, already under the name Krasavtseva (she married Oleg Krasavtsev, deputy head of the FSB for Moscow and the Moscow region) becomes the head of the Department, which is under the control of Ivanov, - to provide utility services to military units and organizations of the Moscow Region.
After that, according to the law, the civil servant had to say goodbye to her firms. Formally, according to an extract from the unified register of legal entities - the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, this is exactly what happened. But in fact, the businesswoman, apparently, has not departed from asset management. Pyataeva-Krasavtseva was the head of three companies - Vesta, Vesta Company and Form T.
PASMI managed to obtain information from JSCB Absolut Bank, where the accounts of Forma T LLC were opened: in April 2017, the right to manage the accounts solely belonged to N.E. Krasavtseva, a representative of the Ministry of Defense. While the new CEO and 100% founder - Alexey Golubenkov- did not even have the right to put a signature on the settlement documents of the company.
General Director of Vesta Company LLC Alexander Fedorov at the facilities in Sergiev Posad, he also complained to subcontractors already working in 2017 that he could not sign invoices on his own.
Muddy stories can be traced through the bankrupt Vesta. Since February 2017, Krasavtseva has been handing over the reins to no one Alexey Strapko, which allegedly leads the company to a financial crisis, spending in an unknown direction more than 170 million rubles The Ministry of Defense, which are on the accounts of Vesta LLC. At the same time, none of the businessmen who collaborated with the firm have ever seen Strapko himself, he does not have a Russian TIN, which indicates the foreign citizenship of this gentleman.
In addition, the topic of a separate investigation - and no longer a journalistic one - may be mechanisms that look very much like laundering the proceeds of the Vesta and Vesta companies. The main contractor for them is a certain ZhKKH Service LLC (TIN 3128108081, director - Nikolai Sidoryuk) - a Belgorod company registered in September 2015. Based on financial analytics, Pyataeva-Krasavtseva's firms transferred about 50 million rubles to his accounts in 2016-2017.
Further, the chain descends to a number of Belgorod contractors (only 8 firms), far from the construction business, but receiving millions from the Ministry of Defense from ZhKH-Service, which were then transferred to private bank cards. For example, according to a PASMI source, about 9 million rubles went from ZhKH-Service to Premium LLC (3128113638, legal address - Stary Oskol, Belgorod Region), the main activity is wholesale meat. In turn, money was credited from Premium to individuals with further withdrawal in cash (the full list of enterprises and names is at the disposal of the editors).
And one more curious moment: just during the period of the main work on the objects of the Ministry of Defense, Pyataeva, according to informed sources of PASMI, paid for the purchase of a hotel in Italy. A preliminary contract for the purchase of real estate for 46 million rubles was signed by Pyataeva Natalia Evgenievna (TIN 770971194912, born on November 12, 1969) and NUOVE ED ANTICHE DIMORE SRL in 2012. And the completion of the transaction falls on 2017, when the owner of Vesta was already the head of the Department of the Ministry of Defense.
After the publication of the first part of the investigation, entitled “Personnel policy for Shoigu: a post for the new Vasilyeva,” the defense minister himself was surprised and angry, to say the least, sources in the military department told PASMI.
All interlocutors agree that the head of the department did not know the details of his employee's past. Indirectly, this is also indicated by the checks that the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office and other control bodies in Sergiev Posad began at Shoigu's go-ahead.
However, Natalia Evgenievna still remains in office. The editorial office does not know anything about the beginning of any legal proceedings against her.
Timur Ivanov, according to PASMI, so far got off with a raised voice with his boss.
P.S. After the publication of the article, the PASMI editors received a response from the GUOV to a request for the execution of contracts by the companies of Natalia Pyataeva-Krasavtseva. The letter informs that the preliminary deadline for the delivery of military facilities in Sergiev Posad is December 25, 2018.
“Currently, GUOV JSC is conducting claims work on several points in relation to Vesta Company LLC.” The final settlement with the contractor is possible only after the commissioning of the object, ”writes a representative of the organization.
He also reports that the work under the contract for the repair of facilities in the hospital. Vishnevsky in Krasnogorsk near Moscow were also not fully executed by Vesta.
The "gurus" of political forecasts have to navigate through insiders - information that leaks from circles close to these "higher echelons". For example, the reputable publication Federal Press unexpectedly published the material “Technically and effectively. Matviyenko and Volodin are being prepared for resignations.” Actually, the headline contains the main political intrigue of the first months of autumn.
However, in the text, the journalist, citing political scientists, in general, did not see any reason for Vyacheslav Volodin to leave his post. To put it bluntly, they are not. Starting with the fact that Volodin is a figure who was elected (he passed the sieve of the election campaign) and ending with the fact that he is a kind of "engine" of pension reform at the State Duma level.
It is safe to say: until the reform becomes a legislative reality, he will be the chairman of the lower house of parliament. Moreover, it can be predicted that Vyacheslav Volodin will honestly and regularly “sit out” the prescribed term in the State Duma. Soon he is going to Volgograd, so that work, including in his constituency, goes on as usual. Well, in fact, the leading politician of United Russia cannot, in some way, "suddenly" change his place of work. Especially now that Vladimir Putin has entered the first years of his next presidential term.
Another thing is Valentina Matvienko. The "Iron Lady" of Russian politics has long been predicted to have a quieter place than to be the chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. She's just a minute! - took up this position on September 21, 2011
They don't talk about women like that, but they always talk about politics: Valentina Matvienko is 69 years old. Of course, in our state, stability is often determined by the irremovability of political figures, but in this case, universal “givens” come into force: you have to delay, but age is no longer the same.
For some reason, all political scientists somehow completely forgot about another political heavyweight, who had previously been predicted to change his position more than once. This is Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
just the same, Sergei Kuzhugetovich, perhaps, will have to change his place of work. The Russians noted that at the end of August, before serious political and public affairs (meetings with the regions, speech to the nation on pension reform), President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu rested in nature.
They visited the Sayano-Shushensky nature reserve and, in the company of the head of the Republic of Tyva, Sholban Kara-oola and FSB director Alexander Bortnikov, sailed part of the way on a boat, and then rested in the forest. Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the head of state, told the press about this, specifying that Vladimir Putin arrived in the region “early” before visiting Kemerovo (and other cities of Siberia).
Political scientists are rightly asking the question: why did the head of state summon Sergei Shoigu and Alexander Bortnikov to the Yenisei taiga? Shoigu and Bortnikov are extremely busy people, their positions are such that you can’t leave them ... It is clear that all three are friends, and sitting with a company by the river, among centuries-old pines, is the best vacation. But was there any talk about future personnel appointments? ..
Political scientists believe that he was walking. So, we will hear about them soon.
