Russia's main task is to achieve victory on the battlefield in Ukraine with minimal loss of troops, Russia's new Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said on Tuesday (14). He added that the military sector needs more efficiency and innovation to achieve its objectives.
On Sunday (12), Russian President Vladimir Putin unexpectedly appointed Belousov, an economist, to replace Sergei Shoigu.
“The main task, obviously, remains to achieve victory and ensure the achievement of the political-military objectives of the special military operation, defined by the president. At the same time – I want to emphasize this specifically – with minimal human losses,” he told a parliamentary hearing.
Belousov's comments were considered surprising given that Russian officials rarely discuss war casualties except to praise the heroism of fallen soldiers.
Both Russia and Ukraine do not publish details about their dead and injured. However, Western military analysts say Russia, with a population more than three times that of Ukraine, is more willing to lose more soldiers to gain more ground on the battlefield.
Russia’s new Defense Minister presented himself as a man of integrity, telling parliamentarians: “I have always been and will be guided by the concrete principle: ‘you can make mistakes (but) you cannot lie’.”
The comment was seen as incisive, as he takes command of a ministry involved in a major corruption investigation that undermined his predecessor. The scandal expanded this Tuesday with the arrest of another official suspected of bribery.
Belousov, who has no military experience, has been tasked by Putin with maximizing efficiencies in Russia's war economy as his troops, having regained momentum, attempt to push deeper into Ukraine.
He said defense spending needs to be optimized so that “every ruble of the budget, which is ultimately paid by our citizens, has maximum effect.”
There is no need for another mass call-up of Russian troops, he said.
In 2022, Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilization of 300,000 reservists, an unpopular measure that led hundreds of thousands of Russians to flee the country to avoid being drafted.
Source: CNN Brasil
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