President Putin and Defense Minister Shoigu have been briefed on the detention
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov has been arrested on suspicion of bribery, the country’s Investigative Committee announced on Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu have been briefed on the arrest, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media.
Earlier on Tuesday, Ivanov took part in an extended ministerial meeting led by Shoigu that included numerous senior Russian officials and top military commanders.
While the Committee effectively provided no details about the affair, it said that Ivanov is suspected of taking bribes on a large scale. According to the relevant clause in the Russian penal code cited by the Committee, such bribes involve sums of at least 1 million rubles (over $10,500). If found guilty, Ivanov could face up to 15 years behind bars.
Ivanov has been long involved in the country’s energy and construction sectors and has worked at several high-profile state-owned companies. He led the military construction contractor Oboronstroy, a company whose primary purpose is building residential homes for servicemen, between 2013 and 2016. He was then appointed to his current post where he oversees military construction within the ministry.
US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is preparing to leave the Trump administration after what a new report has described as months of tension with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, potentially triggering another change at the army’s top echelons.
According to the Friday report by The Wall Street Journal, Driscoll is expected to step down before the end of the year and could leave his post earlier. The newspaper cited people familiar with discussions over his departure.
The Journal reported that Driscoll and his family vacated the official residence assigned to the army secretary at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall this summer, a move that could indicate he was preparing to leave the position.
The reported departure would come at a time of continuing uncertainty at the top echelons of the army.
Hegseth abruptly removed Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George in April, while Trump has not yet nominated a permanent successo....more below
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The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) warns the enemies that any act of aggression against the Islamic Republic will not go unanswered.
In a statement on Thursday, the IRGC issued a “stern warning” to the enemies after US forces launched strikes against the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas.
Following the US military attack on a point on the outskirts of Bandar Abbas Airport with aerial projectiles, the IRGC carried out new strikes targeting the US air base from which the attack originated in the wee hours of Thursday, it added.
“This response is a serious warning to the enemy that they should know the act of aggression will not go unanswered,” the IRGC emphasized.
The elite military force warned of a “more decisive” response if the enemy repeated any act of aggression.
It also said the responsibility for the consequences of any IRGC response lies with the aggressor.
The statement comes after the IRGC Navy on Thursday forced an American tanker to turn back. The tanker ...
