Andrey Nikolaevich Serdyukov (; born 4 March 1962) is a

Russian Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (, ), commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military forces of Russia. In terms of active-duty personnel, they are the world's fifth-largest military force, with at least two m ...

colonel general Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

and commander of the

Russian Airborne Troops The Russian Airborne Forces (russian: Воздушно-десантные войска России, ВДВ, Vozdushno-desantnye voyska Rossii, VDV) are the airborne forces branch of the Russian Armed Forces. It was formed in 1992 from units of ...

from 2016 to 2022. Serdyukov served in the

Soviet Airborne Forces The Soviet Airborne Forces or VDV (from ''Vozdushno- desantnye voyska SSSR'', Russian: Воздушно-десантные войска СССР, ВДВ; Air-landing Forces) was a separate troops branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. First formed be ...

as a junior officer and rose to battalion command. He graduated from the

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (russian: Военная академия имени М. В. Фрунзе), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (rus ...

and became a deputy regimental commander in the Russian Airborne Troops and then a regimental commander. Serdyukov fought in the

First Chechen War The First Chechen War, also known as the First Chechen Campaign,, rmed conflict in the Chechen Republic and on bordering territories of the Russian FederationФедеральный закон № 5-ФЗ от 12 января 1995 (в реда� ...

and served as a deputy brigade commander in Kosovo, participating in the

Incident at Pristina airport A confrontation between Russian forces and NATO forces over the Pristina International Airport occurred on 12 June 1999, in the aftermath of the Kosovo War. Russian troops occupied the airport ahead of a NATO deployment, resulting in a tense sta ...

. Between 2002 and 2003 he led the

138th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade , image = , dates = 1 December 1997present , country = , branch = , type = Mechanized infantry , command_structure ...

and in 2004 took command of the

106th Guards Airborne Division The 106th Guards Tula Red Banner Order of Kutuzov Airborne Division, more generally referred to as the Tula Division, is one of the four airborne divisions of the Russian Airborne Troops, the VDV (russian: Воздушно-десантные во ...

. After graduating from the Military Academy of the General Staff in 2009, Serdyukov became deputy commander of the

5th Red Banner Army The 5th Combined Arms Red Banner Army (5-я общевойсковая армия) is a Russian Ground Forces formation in the Eastern Military District. It was formed in 1939, served during the Soviet invasion of Poland that year, and was deplo ...

, taking command of the army in 2011. In 2013, he became deputy commander and then chief of staff of the

Southern Military District 200px, Headquarters of the district at 53 Pushkinskaya Street / 43 Budenovsky avenue, Rostov-on-Don The Southern Military District (Russian: Южный военный округ) is a military district of Russia. It is one of the five military ...

. While in this position, Serdyukov led troops in the

Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War. The events in Kyiv th ...

and commanded Russian troops in the Donbass. He became commander of the Russian Airborne Troops in October 2016 and was replaced in June 2022 by .

Early life and Soviet military career

According to official Russian sources, Serdyukov was born on 4 March 1962 in Uglegorsky,

Tatsinsky District Tatsinsky District (russian: Таци́нский райо́н) is an administrativeLaw #340-ZS and municipalLaw #251-ZS district (raion), one of the forty-three in Rostov Oblast, Russia. It is located in the center of the oblast. The area of the ...

Rostov Oblast Rostov Oblast ( rus, Росто́вская о́бласть, r=Rostovskaya oblast, p=rɐˈstofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Southern Federal District. The oblast has an area of and a populati ...

. Other sources state he was born in

Amvrosiivka Amvrosiivka or Amvrosievka ( uk, Амвросіївка, ; russian: Амвросиевка) is a city and was the administrative center of Amvrosiivka Raion in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. , the population was approximately It is currently occupied ...

. In 1983, he graduated from the

Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School The General V.F. Margelov Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne twice Red Banner Order of Suvorov Command School (RGVVDKU) () is a military educational institute of the Russian Ministry of Defense, situated in Ryazan, about southeast of Moscow. It was f ...

. He became commander of a reconnaissance platoon of the regimental reconnaissance company in the

104th Guards Airborne Division The 104th Guards Airborne Division () was a division of the Soviet Airborne Troops during the Cold War that briefly became part of the Russian Airborne Forces after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. It was originally formed as the 11th Guards Ai ...

. Serdyukov became deputy company commander, company commander, chief of staff, deputy battalion commander, and then a battalion commander.

Career in the Russian Armed Forces

In 1993, Serdyukov graduated from the

. He became deputy commander of a regiment in the 76th Guards Airborne Division. Serdyukov fought in the

. In 1995 he took command of the 237th Guards Airborne Regiment in the division. Between 1997 and 1998 he was chief of staff, deputy commander, and commander of the

104th Guards Airborne Regiment The 104th Guards Air Assault Regiment is a formation of the Russian Airborne Troops. It is part of the 76th Guards Air Assault Division. History The regiment was formed on 24 September 1948 in Valga, Karelian ASSR as the 104th Guards Air-Landin ...

in the division. He was later deputy commander of the division. Serdyukov was for one year a deputy brigade commander of Russian units in

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

. In Kosovo, he participated in the

, a standoff between the Russian troops and NATO peacekeeping forces. Serdyukov served two one-year rotations in

Chechnya Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...

. On 10 March 2002, Serdyukov became acting commander of the

138th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade , image = , dates = 1 December 1997present , country = , branch = , type = Mechanized infantry , command_structure ...

in the

Leningrad Military District The Leningrad Military District was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Moscow Military District, the Northern Fleet and the Baltic Fleet to form the new Western Military District. Hi ...

. He was confirmed in the post on 11 July 2002, and commanded the brigade until 9 June 2003. From June 2004 to 2007, Serdyukov was commander of the

General staff (2009)

After his 2009 graduation from the Military Academy of the General Staff, Serdyukov became deputy commander of the

. He took command of the army in January 2011. In February 2013, Serdyukov became deputy commander of the

. On 4 October 2013, Serdyukov became chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Southern Military District.

Crimea and Donbass (2014-2015)

Serdyukov led Russian forces in the spring 2014

. Using the code name "Sedov", Serdyukov commanded the grouping of Russian troops in the Donbass in August 2015. As of June 2022, Serdyukov was listed in the Australian "Autonomous Sanctions (Designated Persons and Entities and Declared Persons - Ukraine) List 2014".

Commander airborne troops (2016-2019)

On 4 October 2016, Serdyukov was appointed commander of the

, replacing Colonel General

Vladimir Shamanov Vladimir Anatolyevich Shamanov (russian: Владимир Анатольевич Шаманов, born 15 February 1957) is a retired Colonel General of the Russian Armed Forces who was Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Airborne Troops (VDV) from M ...

. He was presented the Airborne flag on 10 October by defense minister

Sergey Shoygu Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu, ; tyv, Сергей Күжүгет оглу Шойгу, translit=Sergey Kyzhyget oglu Shoygu, . (russian: Сергей Кужугетович Шойгу; born 21 May 1955) is a Russian politician who has served as ...

On 15 September 2017, Serdyukov was seriously injured during an accident on the R21 highway in

Murmansk Oblast Murmansk Oblast (russian: Му́рманская о́бласть, p=ˈmurmənskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ, r=Murmanskaya oblast, ''Murmanskaya oblast''; Kildin Sami: Мурман е̄ммьне, ''Murman jemm'ne'') is a federal subject (an oblast) of ...

while supervising Airborne exercises: a

Chevrolet Lanos The Daewoo Lanos is a compact / sedan car produced by the South Korean manufacturer Daewoo from 1997 to 2002, and thereafter produced under license agreements in various countries worldwide. It has also been marketed as the Daewoo Sens, ZAZ Sens ...

smashed into his minivan, rolling it over. The crash was reported in the Russian media four days later, with Serdyukov reported to be in "satisfactory condition" with a serious

craniocerebral trauma A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity (ranging from mild traumatic brain injury TBI/concussionto severe traumatic br ...

and fracture of the back; he was taken to the intensive care unit of the 1469th Naval Military Hospital of the

Northern Fleet Severnyy flot , image = Great emblem of the Northern Fleet.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Northern Fleet's great emblem , start_date = June 1, 1733; Sov ...

. Airborne Troops deputy commander Major General Vladimir Kochetkov also suffered fractures, while the driver of the passenger car was killed. Serdyukov recovered by 15 November, when he chaired a meeting of the Military Council of the Airborne Troops.

Syria (2019)

From 10 April 2019 to late September 2019, he was the Commander of the troops for the

Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , partof = the foreign involvement in the Syrian civil war, and the military intervention against ISIL , image = , image_size = , border = , caption = To ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

CSTO Peacekeepers to Kazakhstan (2022)

On January 7, 2022, he was appointed Commander of the CSTO peacekeeping forces in Kazakhstan.

Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022)

On 2 February 2022, Serdyukov was rumoured by the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'' to be commander of Russian troops that would be sent into Ukraine, if such an action would be taken. On 19 June 2022, it was reported by Odessa military-civilian spokesperson

Serhiy Bratchuk Sergius is a male given name of Ancient Roman origin after the name of the Latin ''gens'' Sergia or Sergii of regal and republican ages. It is a common Christian name, in honor of Saint Sergius, or in Russia, of Saint Sergius of Radonezh, and h ...

that

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

had sacked Serdyukov for his doomed bid to take

Hostomel airfield Hostomel ( uk, Гостомель, ) is a city in Bucha Raion, Kyiv Oblast, northwest of the capital city of Kyiv. It hosts the administration of Hostomel settlement hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population of the settlement is app ...

in which few of the invading soldiers survived. This was confirmed by Russian media reports. He was replaced by Colonel General . It was reported that he would head the

following his dismissal.

Awards

Serdyukov has received the following awards. *

Hero of the Russian Federation Hero of the Russian Federation (russian: Герой Российской Федерации, Geroy Rossiyskoy Federatsii), also unofficially Hero of Russia (russian: link=no, Герой России, Geroy Rossii), is the highest honorary title ...

(2016) *

Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" (russian: Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством», ''Orden "Za zaslugi pered Otechestvom"'') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by P ...

3rd class and 4th class (with Swords) *

Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky ( ''orden Alexandra Nevskogo'') is an order of merit of the Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious se ...

Order of Courage The Order of Courage may refer to: * , a state decoration of the partially recognized republic of Abkhazia * Order of Courage (Iran), a state decoration of Iran * Order of Courage (Russia) The Order of Courage (russian: Орден Мужес ...

* Order of Honour *

Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

3rd class * Order of Military Merit * Honoured Military Specialist of the Russian Federation

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Serdyukov, Andrey 1962 births Living people Russian colonel generals People from Tatsinsky District Personnel of the Soviet Airborne Forces Recipients of the Order of Courage Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Russia) Frunze Military Academy alumni Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 3rd class Recipients of the Order of Alexander Nevsky Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne Command School alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia alumni Heroes of the Russian Federation People of the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation Russian military personnel of the Syrian civil war