Yuri Dmitrievich Bukreyev (; born 19 May 1941) is a retired Soviet and Russian

colonel general Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

who served as the Head of the Main Directorate of the

Russian Ground Forces The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

from 1998 to 2001.

Early life

Bukreyev was born in the village of Vtoraya Alekseyevka in

Kursk Oblast Kursk Oblast (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Kursk. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, Kursk Oblast had a pop ...

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

. The

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along a ...

began shortly after that and his family fled the occupation by moving to the

Voronezh Oblast Voronezh Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Voronezh. Its population was 2,308,792 as of the Russian Census (2021), 20 ...

. In 1946, the family moved to Alma-Ata, where he graduated from high school.

Military career

Bukreyev entered the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

in 1960 and began serving as a private in a training tank regiment of the

Turkestan Military District The Turkestan Military District (, ''Turkestansky voyenyi okrug (TurkVO)'') was a military district of both the Imperial Russian Army and the Soviet Armed Forces, with its headquarters at Tashkent. The District was first created during the 1874 R ...

. He graduated from the Tashkent Tank Institute and from the

Malinovsky Military Armored Forces Academy The Malinovsky Military Armored Forces Academy (Военная академия бронетанковых войск имени Маршала Советского Союза Р. Я. Малиновского) was one of the Soviet military academ ...

. From 1973 he served in the

Group of Soviet Forces in Germany The Western Group of Forces (WGF), previously known as the Group of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany (GSOFG) and the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany (GSFG), were the troops of the Soviet Army in East Germany. The Group of Soviet Occupation ...

: deputy commander and commander of a tank regiment, chief of staff of a motor rifle division. Since 1980 - commander of the Pavlograd motor rifle division in the

Kiev Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

(

Konotop Konotop ( ) is a city in Sumy Oblast, northeastern Ukraine. Konotop serves as the administrative center of Konotop Raion within the oblast. Konotop is located about from Sumy, the administrative center of the oblast. It is host to Konotop Ai ...

) - probably the 47th MRD. He graduated from the Voroshilov General Staff Academy in Moscow in 1985 with a gold medal. Since March 1989 - Chief of Staff - First Deputy Commander of the

. Since October 1991 - Chief of the Main Staff of the Ground Forces - First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the

Soviet Ground Forces The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

. After the disbandment of the Main Command of the Ground Forces in January 1998, he was appointed acting head of the newly formed Main Directorate of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. On 9 May 1998 he was appointed the Head of the Main Directorate of the Ground Forces and the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces for the Ground Forces. Bukreyev retired from military service in 2001.

Civilian career

Since leaving the military he has been involved in several organizations that assist veterans and served as an advisor to the Russian government on veterans' affairs. He is the chairman of the National Association of Reserve Officers of the Armed Forces ("Megapir").

Early life

Military career

Civilian career

References

See also