A Russian deputy defence minister has been accused of taking bribes and remanded in custody by a court in Moscow. Timur Ivanov, who denies the charges, is accused of accepting bribes “on a particularly large scale”. Appointed to the defence ministry in 2016, Mr Ivanov, 47, has been responsible for Russia’s military infrastructure projects. Activists have long criticised the levels of alleged corruption in Russia.
However, such high profile cases have been rare since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Mr Ivanov is considered an ally of Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and has worked with him for many years. He was previously deputy prime minister of the Moscow region, where Mr Shoigu briefly served as governor.
The Kremlin has rejected reports in some Russian media that the real reason for Mr Ivanov’s arrest was that he was suspected of treason.
In 2022, the Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF), the group founded by late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, accused Mr Ivanov of participating in “corruption schemes during construction in the territories of Ukraine occupied by Russia”.
Credit: bbc.com
