Valery Gerasimov

Valery Gerasimov is a General of the Army and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as well as First Deputy Minister of Defence, a position he has held since November 2012. He also serves as the commander of the Joint Group of Forces in the Russo-Ukrainian war, having been appointed to that role in January 2023. He is best known for overseeing Russia's military operations in Ukraine and for his long tenure as the top military officer in the Russian armed forces.