Viktor Viktorovich Chirkov (; born 8 September 1959) is a Russian

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

and the former commander of the

Baltic Fleet The Baltic Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Baltic Sea. Established 18 May 1703, under Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Baltic Fleet is the oldest Russian fleet. In 1918, the fleet w ...

. On 6 May 2012, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the

Russian Navy The Russian Navy is the Navy, naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696. Its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States (which had i ...

, succeeding

Vladimir Vysotsky Vladimir Semyonovich Vysotsky (25 January 193825 July 1980) was a Soviet singer-songwriter, poet, and actor who had an immense and enduring effect on Soviet culture. He became widely known for his unique singing style and for his lyrics, which ...

, who had occupied the post for almost five years. He retired from his position for health reasons in March 2016.

Military career

Chirkov is a surface warfare officer with Pacific Fleet roots. He was born on 8 September 1959 in

Alma-Ata Almaty, formerly Alma-Ata, is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population exceeding two million residents within its metropolitan area. Located in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains in southern Kazakhstan, near the border wi ...

, capital of the former Kazakh SSR. In 1982, he graduated from the Pacific Higher Naval School in Vladivostok and became head of the mine-torpedo department on the Riga-class frigate ''Lun'' in the Pacific Fleet. He served as assistant commander of a corvette, then executive officer of the Kotlin-class destroyer ''Vozbuzhdennyy''. In 1986-1987, Chirkov completed Higher Special Officers’ Classes in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, and became commander of the infamous Krivak-class frigate ''Storozhevoy''. Under a mutinous crew, this Soviet

unit had tried, unsuccessfully, to defect in 1975. Later it transferred to the Pacific Fleet. From 1990 to 1993, Chirkov commanded the ''Udaloy''-class destroyer ''Admiral Spiridonov''. He was deputy chief of staff for an ASW ship division, deputy division commander, and commander of an ASW ship division during 1993-1998. In 1997, he completed the Kuznetsov Naval Academy as a correspondence student. After graduating from the Military Academy of the General Staff in 2000, Chirkov served for five years as chief of staff, first deputy commander of Troops and Forces in the North-East on

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

. In the first years of this assignment, he served under Vice-Admiral Konstantin Sidenko. In 2005-2007, he commanded the Primorskiy Mixed Forces Flotilla. For the next two years, he was chief of staff, first deputy commander of the Baltic Fleet, and became its commander in September 2009. Since 2007, he was the Chief of Staff/First Deputy Commander of the Baltic Fleet, and appointed Fleet Commander by the

President of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

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 ...

on 8 September 2009. On 6 May 2012, President

on his last day in office prior to the inauguration of

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

appointed Chirkov to replace Vladimir Vysotsky as the Russian Navy's Commander-in-Chief. In an interview with news agency

RIA Novosti RIA Novosti (), sometimes referred to as RIAN () or RIA (), is a Russian state-owned domestic news agency. On 9 December 2013, by a decree of Vladimir Putin, it was liquidated and its assets and workforce were transferred to the newly created ...

, Chirkov said: "''The most important thing for Russia is to build a fleet with the support of the president and like-minded persons.''" In March 2014, as Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Chirkov also oversaw all naval operations with Aleksandr Vitko who was then commander of the Russian

Black Sea Fleet The Black Sea Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. The Black Sea Fleet, along with other Russian ground and air forces on the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula, are subordin ...

during Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in which both the Sevastopol Naval Base and Southern Naval Base were seized by Russian forces.

Retirement

In March 2016, Russian media announced Chirkov's retirement for health reasons. Vladimir Korolev, then commander of the

Northern Fleet The Northern Fleet (, ''Severnyy flot'') is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Arctic. According to the Russian ministry of defence: "The Northern Fleet dates its history back to a squadron created in 1733 to protect the terri ...

, was named as his successor.

Awards

Order of Military Merit * Order of navy Merit rib

Order of Naval Merit * Order service to the homeland3 rib

Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR III- class

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chirkov, Viktor 1959 births Russian admirals Commanders-in-chief of the Russian Navy Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Russia) Living people Recipients of the Order of Naval Merit (Russia) Pacific Higher Naval School alumni Higher Special Officer Classes of the Navy alumni N. G. Kuznetsov Naval Academy alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia alumni