Aleksandr Chaiko

Aleksandr Yuryevich Chaiko (Russian: Александр Юрьевич Чайко; born on 27 July 1971) is a Russian army officer and alleged war criminal who was formerly the commander of the Eastern Military District from 12 November 2021 until he was replaced with Rustam Muradov on October 7, 2022.[1][2] He was awarded the title Hero of the Russian Federation in 2020, and is a colonel general as of 2021.

Aleksandr Chaiko
Chaiko in 2021
Native name
Александр Юрьевич Чайко
Birth nameAleksandr Yuryevich Chaiko
Born (1971-07-27) 27 July 1971
Golitsyno, Moscow Oblast, Soviet Union
Allegiance Soviet Union
 Russia
Service/branch Russian Ground Forces
Years of service1989–present
RankColonel general
Commands heldEastern Military District
Battles/warsRussian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
AwardsHero of the Russian Federation

He is suspected of organizing massacres in Bucha and other towns around Kyiv during 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[3]

Biography

Aleksandr Chaiko was born on 27 July 1971 in Golitsyno, Moscow Oblast.

In 1988, he graduated from the Moscow Suvorov Military School.[4]

In 1992, he graduated from the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School. After graduating from college, he served as a platoon, company commander, battalion chief of staff, battalion commander in the Western Group of Forces and in the Moscow Military District.

He also graduated from the Combined Arms Academy of the Armed Forces of Russian in 2001. From 2001 to 2006, he was the chief of staff of a motorized rifle regiment, commander of a motorized rifle regiment (MVO). He was promoted to a colonel ahead of schedule in 2004. From 2006 to 2007, he was the commander of the 27th separate guards motorized rifle Sevastopol Red Banner brigade named after the 60th anniversary of the USSR, and from November 2007 to May 2009, he was a commander of the 2nd guards motorized rifle Taman Order of the October Revolution, Red Banner, Suvorov Order of the M.I. Kalinin (MVO). In October 2009, he was the head of the 473 district educational center for training junior specialists (PURVO).)[5] He graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia in 2012.

In June 2013, Chaiko was the Deputy Army Commander of the Central Military District. On 8 July 2014, by the Decree of the President of Russia, he was appointed Commander of the 20th Guards Combined Arms Red Banner Army, after the reconstruction of the 1st Guards Red Banner Tank Army in 2014, he became the Commander of the 1st Guards Red Banner Tank Army of the Western Military District until April 2017.[6] He was promoted to a lieutenant general by Decree of the President of Russia No. 665 dated 12 December 2016.[7]

Chaiko was a member of the Russian Military Operation in Syria. In 2015, he was the first chief of staff of the Grouping of Forces of the Russian Armed Forces Syria.

From April 2017 to November 2018, Chaiko was the Chief of Staff - the First Deputy Commander of the Eastern Military District.[8]

From November 2018 to February 2019, he was the Deputy Chief of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia.

In February 2019, he became the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia.[9]

Chaiko with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on 7 January 2020

From September 2019 to November 2020 and from February 2021 to June 2021, he was the Commander of the Group of Forces of the Armed Forces of Russia in Syria.[10][11]

By the Decree of the President of Russia, No. 355, on 11 June 2021, Chaiko was promoted Colonel General.[12]

On 12 November 2021, Chaiko became the Commander of the Eastern Military District.[1] On 16 November, he officially took office, accepting the standard of the commander of the troops.[13] On August 7, 2022, the United Kingdom Ministry of Defense reported that Chaiko was removed from his post. [14]

Atrocities

Chaiko earned a global reputation as a brutal leader in Syria in 2019 and 2020.[15] Human Rights Watch states that he may be responsible for widespread attacks against hospitals, schools and populated areas in the Idlib Governorate.[15] The attacks killed 1600 civilians and displaced 1.4 million.[15] During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, troops under Chaiko's command tortured and executed hundreds of Ukrainian civilians during the Kyiv offensive.[15] War crimes prosecutors in Ukraine are researching whether Chaiko directly ordered specific atrocities.[15]

References
  1. "В Восточном военном округе сменился командующий < Новости | Дебри-ДВ". www.debri-dv.ru. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  2. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, October 7". Institute for the Study of War. 7 October 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  3. "Takeaways from investigation of Russian general in Ukraine".
  4. "Московские суворовцы".
  5. "В ПУрВО назначен начальник 473 окружного учебного центра подготовки младших специалистов". Информационное агентство «Европейско-Азиатские Новости». Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  6. "Первая танковая: возрождение". archive.redstar.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  7. "Указ Президента Российской Федерации от 12.12.2016 г. № 665". Президент России (in Russian). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  8. "Руководящему составу Восточного военного округа представлен новый начальник штаба : Министерство обороны Российской Федерации". structure.mil.ru. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  9. "Чайко Александр Юрьевич - биография". Mega-Stars.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  10. "СМИ узнали о смене командующего группировкой российских войск в Сирии". РБК (in Russian). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  11. "На авиабазе ВКС РФ Хмеймим в Сирии открыли памятник погибшему в бою с террористами летчику Роману Филипову : Министерство обороны Российской Федерации". syria.mil.ru. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  12. "Указ Президента РФ №355 от 11 июня 2021 года — Президент России". prezident.org. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  13. "Новый командующий войсками ВВО принял дела < Новости | Дебри-ДВ". www.debri-dv.ru. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  14. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 7". www.understandingwar.org. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  15. Kinetz, Erika (26 October 2022). "'Kill everyone': Russian violence in Ukraine was strategic". Associated Press. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
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