Head of Russian military company, linked to disgraced ex-deputy minister, arrested on corruption charges

Andrei Belkov, the head of the military construction company linked to Russia's Defense Ministry, was arrested on suspicion of corruption, the state-controlled media outlet Kommersant reported on July 24.

The charges relate to the alleged purchase of equipment at inflated prices and subsequent pocketing of the difference.

According to Kommersant, the charges are not directly linked to Belkov's official capacities and concern a comparatively small amount of money that reportedly went missing, estimated to be around 45 million rubles ($527,000)—allegedly split between several conspirators.

But there may be additional charges in the future, as both the company and Belkov himself were previously supervised by former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, who is currently also under investigation on corruption-related charges.

Ivanov, who previously served as the country's top official in charge of the construction of military facilities, was arrested and dismissed from his position in April. It was likely the highest-profile corruption case in Russia since the beginning of the full-scale war against Ukraine.

Various Western countries have sanctioned Ivanov due to his role in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and he was previously the target of a December 2022 investigation by the Anti-Corruption Foundation, founded by late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

The investigation alleged that Ivanov profited from construction projects in occupied Mariupol.

Some independent Russian media suggested that Ivanov was actually suspected of treason and that the bribery charges were a cover for a more scandalous crime.

"A bribe is for the public. So far, they don't want to talk publicly about treason," a source in law enforcement told the IStories media outlet in April.

"No one would have detained him for corruption. Everyone there (in the Kremlin) knew about this for a long time," another source said.

The Kremlin has denied the veracity of such suggestions.

Russia systemically abuses its soldiers in Ukraine to ‘maintain order,’ The Insider reports

According to the Insider, the patterns of abuse of Russian soldiers in Ukraine “borrow heavily from Soviet labor camp traditions.”

The Kyiv IndependentNate Ostiller