.mw-parser-output .hidden-begin{box-sizing:border-box;width:100%;padding:5px;border:none;font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .hidden-title{font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .hidden-content{text-align:left}You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Russian. (March 2014) Click [show] for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the Russian article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 2,306 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Russian Wikipedia article at [[:ru:Витко, Александр Викторович]]; see its history for attribution. You should also add the template ((Translated|ru|Витко, Александр Викторович)) to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.
Admiral

Aleksandr Viktorovich Vitko
Native name
Александр Викторович Витко
Born (1961-09-08) September 8, 1961 (age 62)
Vitebsk, Byelorussian SSR, USSR
Allegiance Soviet Union (1979–1991)
 Russia (1991–present)
Service/branch Soviet Navy
 Russian Navy
Years of service1979–2021
RankAdmiral
UnitNaval High Command
Battles/wars2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine

Admiral Aleksandr Viktorovich Vitko (Russian: Александр Викторович Витко; born September 13, 1961) is a retired officer of the Russian Navy, and a former commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet between April 2013 and June 2018.[1]

Biography

Aleksandr Vitko was born September 13, 1961, in Vitebsk, the Byelorussian SSR. In 1984 he graduated from the Nakhimov Naval School, and served in the Pacific Fleet.[2] During 2009-2013 he was the Deputy commander of the Northern Fleet.

Vitko took command of the Black Sea Fleet on April 15, 2013.[3]

Vitko took an active part in the events of the 2014 Crimean crisis. He delivered to Ukrainian troops an ultimatum to surrender before 5:00 am on March 4, threatening to storm the offices and units of the armed forces of Ukraine in the Crimea.[4] On March 4, 2014, together with Aleksei Chaly he visited the headquarters of the Naval Forces of Ukraine. The next day, he was prosecuted by the general prosecutor of Ukraine on charges of incitement to treason and sabotage against the organization of the Ukrainian troops.[5]

The Russian Defense Ministry called this an attempt of provocation aimed to destabilize the situation in Crimea. According to Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov, the Black Sea Fleet commander performed his duties lawfully, in strict compliance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements on basing the Russian fleet in Ukraine and the Charter of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. On March 12, 2014, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation opened a criminal investigation into the illegal decision of the General Prosecutor's Office against Aleksandr Vitko. He would be included amongst the individuals who were targeted with asset freezes, travel bans, and sanctions by the European Union and the United States.[6][7]

On June 26, 2018, it was announced that Vitko was replaced by Vice-Admiral Alexander Moiseev and assigned "a new place of military service in the Navy High Command."[3]

In 2019 Vitko was appointed Chief of the General Staff of the Navy, replacing Vice-Admiral Andrei Volozhinsky, and was seen as a potential political replacement for Dmitry Ovsyannikov.[8][9]

Sanctions

In March 2014 the EU enacted sanctions against Aleksandr Vitko in relation to the violation of Ukrainian sovereign territory.[10]

Sanctioned by the UK government in 2014 in relation to Russo-Ukrainian War. [11]

References

  1. ^ Биография Александра Витко (in Russian). RIA Novosti. 17 April 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  2. ^ "Вице-адмирал Витко Александр Викторович, командующий Черноморским флотом Российской Федерации". www.kchf.ru. Retrieved 2021-11-19.
  3. ^ a b "Вице-адмирал Александр Моисеев назначен командующим Черноморским флотом". TASS. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  4. ^ Hjelmgaard, Jacob Resneck and Kim. "Russian admiral issues ultimatum in Crimea; U.S. halts trade talks". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
  5. ^ Тихомиров, Андрей (2019-12-17). Президентство Владимира Путина: 2016 г. Хроника событий (in Russian). Litres. ISBN 978-5-04-221528-5.
  6. ^ Al-Saiegh, Mohammed (2014-04-29). "Ukraine crisis: See full sanctions list". CNNMoney. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
  7. ^ "US and EU sanctions: the Russian and Ukrainian targets". the Guardian. 2014-03-17. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
  8. ^ "Звезды под елкой: Минобороны провело крупную кадровую ротацию" (in Russian). Izvestia. 23 December 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
  9. ^ Urcosta, Ridvan Bari. "Newly Appointed Governor of Sevastopol Faces Looming Showdown With Local Elites". Jamestown. Archived from the original on 2019-07-30. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
  10. ^ "COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2019/408 of 14 March 2019". Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  11. ^ "CONSOLIDATED LIST OF FINANCIAL SANCTIONS TARGETS IN THE UK" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2023.
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