Russia’s ‘ruthless’ commander for Ukraine war and the Monday's blitz: Explained

Russia's shifting military tactics as seen in the missile strikes in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities on Monday had Sergei Surovikin written all over them. Even though a severe response from Moscow was widely anticipated following the collapse of bridge linking it to Crimea, bombing of Kyiv which has maintained a relative calm since June was a bolt out of the blue, for Ukraine and for the world.

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Sergei Surovikin who was appointed on Saturday as the commander of Russia's invading forces in Ukraine has quite a reputation- not a good one, of course. The military veteran who served in the Soviet Union's war with Afghanistan during the 1980s is infamous for ordering troops to open fire on pro-democracy protesters in Moscow during the final days of the Soviet Union in 1991.

In his resume is also how he led Russian forces' intervention during the Syrian war in 2017 during which he was accused of complicity in the bombing of opposition fighters and of overseeing chemical weapons attacks.

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So has Vladimir Putin decided to put him in charge of Russian forces in Ukraine because of his ruthlessness and brutality?

What happened on Monday in Ukraine has the answer to that question.