Army General Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

Valentin Vladimirovich Korabelnikov (, born January 4, 1946) is a Russian

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

, best known for being the longest serving director of the

GRU Gru is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Despicable Me'' film series. Gru or GRU may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Gru (rapper), Serbian rapper * Gru, an antagonist in '' The Kine Saga'' Organizations Georgia (c ...

for nearly 12 years. Korabelnikov attended the Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-Aircraft Rocket School of Air Defense, from which he graduated in 1969, and subsequently graduated from the M. V. Frunze Military Academy in 1974 and the General Staff Academy in 1988. In May 1997, Korabelnikov was appointed Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate (

) of the Russian General Staff, Russia's largest intelligence agency. Korabelnikov worked his way up the GRU hierarchy for 20 years before becoming the Intelligence Directorate's head. Korabelnikov spent time alongside Spetsnaz brigades in Chechnya, while he was reportedly responsible for the operation which resulted in the elimination of Chechen President

Dzhokhar Dudayev Dzhokhar Musayevich Dudayev (born Dudin Musa-Khant Dzhokhar; 15 February 1944 – 21 April 1996) was a Chechen politician, statesman and military leader of the 1990s Chechen independence movement from Russia. He served as the first president o ...

in 1996. Korabelnikov often involved himself personally in operational work, and was reportedly wounded by Chechen fighters. In July 1999, Korabelnikov received an official acknowledgment from president

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...

for his "significant contribution to the settlement of the

Kosovo Conflict The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...

". He was a member of Russian delegation, led by Prime Minister

Yevgeny Primakov Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov (29 October 1929 – 26 June 2015, ) was a Russian politician and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1998 to 1999. During his long career, he also served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1996 to ...

that met with

Slobodan Milosevic Slobodan ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан) is a Serbo-Croatian masculine given name which means "free" (''sloboda'' / meaning "freedom, liberty") used among other South Slavs as well. It was coined by Serbian liberal politician Vladimir Jovanović w ...

during the

NATO bombing of Yugoslavia The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Serbia and Montenegro, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombing ...

. On 24 April 2009, President

Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...

signed a

decree A decree is a law, legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state, judge, monarch, royal figure, or other relevant Authority, authorities, according to certain procedures. These procedures are usually defined by the constitution, Legislativ ...

dismissing Korabelnikov from his position as head of the GRU's Intelligence Directorate, replacing him with Gen Alexander Shlyakhturov.Russia military spy boss 'sacked'

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, 24 April 2009 No reason was given the decision, however Korabelnikov had reportedly tendered his resignation earlier in 2009 due to disagreement over ongoing military reforms.

References

External links

Smart and well trained people work with US
His interview
Another interview (Russian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korabelnikov, Valentin Recipients of the Order of Courage (Russia) Russian politicians GRU Chiefs Soviet generals People of the Chechen wars Living people 1946 births Frunze Military Academy alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni Heroes of the Russian Federation Generals of the army (Russia)