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News that a former deputy defense minister of Russia fled to France and left the party shook the country.
MOSCOW – This report could cause a huge uproar in Russia: Russian TV channel Surgrad TV Former Deputy Defense Minister Tatiana Shevtsova has reportedly fled to France. According to the station, she has also reportedly switched parties. It was first reported in Germany ZDF and news site T-Online.
This news, if true, could cause a huge political stir. But so far only a handful of Russian-language media outlets have reported on the suspicions, and there has been no comment from official bodies. Shevtsova was responsible for financial problems at the Ministry of Defense, so she may have insider knowledge of how many weapons and military equipment have been purchased in recent years. In the war in Ukraine, this could be important information for Kiev and its supporters.
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Surgrad TV Refers to the portal in his statement Yuridicheskaya Gazeta, which created suspicion at first. It was reported that on June 26, Shevtsova packed her bags and flew to France. This is “unconfirmed information on the Internet”. The former deputy defense secretary was fired a few days ago and has not been seen in public since.
On June 17, President Vladimir Putin dismissed Shevzova and three deputy ministers of the Ministry of Defense by decree. Been going on for months The Russian Ministry of Defense was completely reorganized. At the end of April, his colleague, Timur Ivanov, was arrested and imprisoned for corruption. In mid-May, Putin fired his longtime defense minister and close ally, Sergei Shoigu, and replaced him with Andrei Pelusov.
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Report from Sargrad TV Shevtsova also suggested that she handled large sums of money in the Ministry of Defense, and she allegedly pocketed much of the money. At least he owned expensive real estate, the report said. In addition, she has Ongoing trials against arrested military officers and politicians Said.
Corruption has been rampant in the ministry over the years and there have been repeated scandals. The new minister, Pelozov, now seems to want to put an end to this. Dozens of other high-ranking military officials are said to be in the sights of the domestic secret service. Pelozov was reportedly enraged when he learned that Shevtsova had left the country. If she actually manages to escape, it will weaken Peluso’s position.
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why Surgrad TV – After all, it was one of the five most widely accessed news sites in Russia—clearly not the only major Russian media outlet reporting on the incident. The site is not considered a tabloid. However, the media does not contain any secure information. “Official sources neither confirm nor deny this,” the report said.
It is questionable whether Shevtsova actually left the party and is now sending information to the Europeans. She disappeared from public view for a few days. But given the fact that the Kremlin doesn’t deal particularly badly with defectors, that seems unlikely. (fmü)
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