Russia’s Black Sea fleet commander hit with war crimes arrest warrant

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on Tuesday issued arrest warrants against two top Russian military officials.

General-Lieutenant Sergei Kobylash, the commander of Russia’s long-range aviation forces, and Admiral Viktor Sokolov (who Ukraine once claimed it had killed), the head of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, face arrest for war crimes related to Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

The ICC asserts that Kobylash and Sokolov are responsible for bombarding civilians and bombing Ukraine’s critical energy infrastructure from October 2022 to March 2023. During this period, Russia heavily targeted Ukraine’s energy plants in an attempt to heap pressure on Kyiv.

According to the ICC press release, “there are reasonable grounds to believe that the suspects also bear responsibility for the crime against humanity” in their onslaught. The warrants are classified for security reasons to protect witnesses.

General-Lieutenant Sergei Kobylash, the commander of Russia’s long-range aviation forces | Sergei Chirikov/EFE via EPA

Kobylash, who is of Moldovan ethnicity and was born in Ukraine’s Odesa, commands the fleet of TU-95 and TU-160 strategic bombers that frequently launch missiles used to shell his former hometown.

Sokolov’s status is somewhat mysterious.

In September, Ukraine said it had killed him, but he has appeared in public several times since then, according to Russian state-owned news outlets. In February 2024, some pro-Russian military correspondents claimed Sokolov had been fired. However, he is still listed on Russia’s Ministry of Defense website as an active commander.

Denis Leven is hosted at POLITICO under the EU-funded EU4FreeMedia residency program.