Sergey Istrakov

Colonel General Sergey Yuryevich Istrakov (; born 5 February 1959) is a Russian military officer who has served as the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces since 2015. He was previously the Chief of the Main Staff and First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces from 2013 to 2015, and was the acting Commander-in-Chief from 2013 to 2014.

Early life and education Sergey Yuryevich Istrakov was born on 5 February 1959 in Chernyakhovsk, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russian SFSR. He graduated from the Baku Higher Combined Arms Command School in 1982 and was commissioned as an officer.

Military career Even though the Baku Higher Combined Arms Command School was an institution of the Soviet Army, he spent much of the next twenty years serving in units of the Soviet and Russian Airborne Forces. He held command at levels from a platoon to a battalion in the 39th Separate Air Assault Brigade, located in the Carpathian Military District. In 1989 Istrakov began attending the Frunze Military Academy, though in April 2008 he was appointed the commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army in the Siberian Military District. Ukrainian military intelligence has claimed that during that time, he was responsible for preparing Russian forces to be involved in the war in Donbass. In early 2015 he became Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, and according to Ukrainian intelligence, Colonel General Istrakov coordinated Russian military actions in the Donbass. According to Georgian sources, Istrakov is responsible for integrating Abkhazian Armed Forces units with the Russian Armed Forces from 2017.

Awards and decorations

Order of Courage Order of Honour

In 2017 the Donetsk People's Republic gifted Istrakov a watch for his "significant personal contribution to the formation and development of the Donetsk People's Republic."

Personal life He is married and has a son and a daughter.