Tag Archives: 31st Missile Army

More Appointments, Etc.

The wave of appointments, dismissals, and reshuffling in the upper echelons of the military leadership continues . . . this one features the dismissal of Vice-Admiral Borisov, the shipbuilding chief, who reportedly went down over his role in the December round of Mistral talks with the French.  This one also has a lot of changes and shuffling of officers in RVSN armies.

Here’s what President Medvedev’s 19 April decree on Defense Ministry personnel does.

Relieve:

  • Colonel Aleksandr Vasilyevich Deryavko from the post of Commander, 60th Missile Division.

Relieve and dismiss from military service:

  • Vice-Admiral Nikolay Konstantinovich Borisov from the post of Chief, Shipbuilding, Armaments, and Arms Servicing, Deputy CINC for Armaments, Navy.

Appoint:

  • Colonel Aleksandr Vladimirovich Kasyanenko, Deputy Commander, 31st Missile Army, relieved of duty as Chief, Military Academy of the RVSN Branch (Rostov-na-Donu).
  • General-Major Aleksandr Dmitriyevich Sivachev, Deputy Chief, Military Academy of the RVSN, relieved of duty as Chief of Staff, First Deputy Commander, 33rd Missile Army.
  • General-Major Valeriy Yevgenyevich Tarazevich, Chief of Staff, First Deputy Commander, 33rd Missile Army, relieved of duty as Deputy Commander, 33rd Missile Army.
  • General-Major Ivan Nikolayevich Kuzichkin, Deputy Commander, 33rd Missile Army.
  • General-Major Viktor Vladimirovich Lizvinskiy, Chief, Organizational-Technical Directorate, Deputy Chief, Main Armor Directorate, Defense Ministry.
  • Colonel Andrey Gennadyevich Loginov, Commander, 60th Missile Division.
  • Colonel Andrey Nikolayevich Mordvichev, Commander, 4th Independent Tank Brigade.
  • Colonel Aleksandr Ivanovich Novkin, Commander, 138th Independent Motorized Rifle Brigade.

New 31st Missile Army Commander

The RVSN today announced General-Major Anatoliy Grigoryevich Kulay as the new commander of its 31st (Orenburg) Missile Army.  Kulay had been its chief of staff and first deputy commander since early 2010.  He replaced General-Lieutenant Ivan Reva, who not long ago became the RVSN’s chief of staff and first deputy commander.

Kulay commanded the 33rd (Omsk) Missile Army’s  29th Guards Vitebsk Order of Lenin Red Banner Missile Division (aka the Irkutsk Missile Division), and its three regiments of RT-2PM ‘Topol’ (SS-25) ICBMs between 2006 and 2010.  His division was one of Russia’s two best mobile ICBM divisions based on the results of the 2006 training year.  It was one of Russia’s best again in 2007.  In early 2008, Kulay made one-star.  Prior to 2006, Kulay was an SS-25 missile regiment commander in the former 8th (Yurya or Pervomayskiy) Missile Division, Orenburg Missile Army.

He’s 44, and was commissioned from the Serpukhov Higher Military-Command-Engineering School of Missile Troops.  He’s a graduate of both his senior service school – the Peter the Great Military Academy of the RVSN – and the General Staff Academy.

The RVSN also appointed General-Major Aleksandr Ponomarenko commander of the Omsk Missile Army.  He had been chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Vladimir Missile Army.  More on him later.