Valery Yevgenyevich Yevtukhovich (; born 17 April 1954) is a

Russian Airborne Forces The Russian Airborne Forces () is the airborne separate combat arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It is a rapid response force and strategic reserve that is under the President of Russia, reporting directly to the Chief of the General Staff, and ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

who was commander of the Airborne Forces from 2007 to 2009, and was Chief of Staff and First Deputy Commander from 2005 to 2007. Over the course of his career he held positions at nearly every level of command within the Airborne Forces, and was deployed in the conflicts in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and former

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

Early life and education

Yevtukhovich was born on 17 April 1954 in

Vyazma Vyazma () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District, Smolensk Oblast, Vyazemsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk, the ...

Smolensk Oblast Smolensk Oblast (), informally also called Smolenshchina (), is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative centre is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Smolensk. As of the 2021 Russ ...

, Soviet Union. He graduated from the

Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne Command School The General V.F. Margelov Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne twice Red Banner Order of Suvorov Command School (RGVVDKU) () is a military educational institute of the Russian Ministry of Defense, situated in Ryazan, about southeast of Moscow. It was ...

of the

Soviet Airborne Forces The Soviet Airborne Forces or VDV (from ''Vozdushno- desantnye voyska SSSR'', Russian: Воздушно-десантные войска СССР, ВДВ; Air-landing Forces) was a separate troops branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. First formed b ...

(VDV) in 1975.

Military career

Between 1975 and 1979, he was a platoon and then company commander with the 350th Parachute Regiment. From 1979 to 1981, he was deployed to

during the Soviet-Afghan War, and held the position of battalion chief of staff and deputy commander, within the same regiment. In 1981, he was briefly a battalion chief of staff in the 234th Parachute Regiment before being sent to the

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (), was a military academy of the Soviet and later the Russian Armed Forces ...

. After graduating in 1984 Yevtukhovich became chief of staff of the 104th Parachute Regiment, holding that position until 1986. From February to September 1986, he was the deputy chief of staff of the 7th Guards Airborne Division before becoming the commander of the 301st Training Parachute Regiment. From 1989 to 1990, he was the chief of staff and deputy commander of the

104th Guards Airborne Division The 104th Guards Order of Kutuzov 2nd Class Air Assault Division (; MUN 73612) is a division of the Russian Airborne Forces (VDV) and formerly of the Soviet Airborne Troops. From 1998 until 2023 it was called the 31st Guards Airborne Brigade () ...

General officer

From 1990 to 1992, Yevtukhovich was the commander of the 224th Training Center of separate airborne brigade NCOs, and then from 1992 was the commander of the 242nd Training Center of the Airborne Forces in

Omsk Omsk (; , ) is the administrative center and largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia and has a population of over one million. Omsk is the third List of cities and tow ...

. He then attended the General Staff Academy from 1994, and graduated in 1996, afterwards serving as Deputy Chief of Staff of the Airborne Forces from 1997 to 1998. In the late 1990s, he served in the Russian VDV peacekeeping contingent in

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north a ...

, being the commander of the VDV operational group there as of 1999. After the Incident at Pristina Airport, which he took part in organizing, Russia joined the NATO-led

Kosovo Force The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO-led international NATO peacekeeping, peacekeeping force and military of Kosovo. KFOR is the third security responder, after the Kosovo Police and the EU Rule of Law (European ...

, and Yevtukhovich was the first commander of the Russian military contingent in Kosovo. He served in that position from June or July 1999 to October 2000, being succeeded by Vladimir Kazantsev, before becoming Deputy Commander of the Airborne Forces from 2000 to 2005. Yevtukhovich succeeded Alexander Kolmakov as

commander of the Russian Airborne Forces The Commander of the Russian Airborne Forces () is a general officer position that is tasked with leading the Russian Airborne Forces. The office is part of the Airborne Forces Command and reports to the Chief of the General Staff. History On 4 S ...

on 19 November 2007. He was dismissed on 7 May 2009 and eventually replaced by

Vladimir Shamanov Vladimir Anatolievich Shamanov (, born 15 February 1957) is a retired Colonel General of the Military of Russia, Russian Armed Forces who was Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Airborne Troops (VDV) from May 2009 to October 2016 and a Russian p ...

Awards and decorations

;Russia and the Soviet Union *

Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" () is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by Presidential Decree 442. Until the re-establishment of the Order of St. Andrew in 1998, it was the highest order of ...

, 4th class with swords * Order of Military Merit *

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star () was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 1930 but its statute was only defined in decree of the Presidium of the ...

Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" The Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" (), also known as the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", was a Soviet Union, Soviet Order (honour), military order awarded in three classes ...

, 3rd class

References

, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Yevtukhovich, Valery 1954 births Living people Russian lieutenant generals Commanders of the Russian Airborne Forces Frunze Military Academy alumni Ryazan Guards Higher Airborne Command School alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia alumni Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 4th class Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Russia) People from Vyazma Recipients of the Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", 3rd class Soviet military personnel of the Soviet–Afghan War Personnel of the Soviet Airborne Forces