Russian general Sergei Surovikin reappears in Algeria after months without being seen in public

Russian General Sergei Surovikin, who was dismissed at the end of August as head of the Aerospace Forces, is in Algeria on a “high-level” visit together with a delegation from the Russian Ministry of Defense after months without being seen in public.

Surovikin, who had not appeared in public since the failed rebellion carried out by the leader of the Wagner Group, Yevgeni Prigozhin, arrived in Algeria on Tuesday and visited the Abdelhamid Ben Badis mosque in Oran this week, as reported this Friday by Kommersant.

Military sources cited by said newspaper affirm that Surovikin's trip may point to his possible appointment within the Ministry of Defense for jobs related to the country after he was replaced from his previous position by his deputy, Colonel General Viktor Afzalov.

The Russian general appears in the photographs dressed in beige walking alongside several Russian officials in military uniform and next to the imam of the mosque, as the RBK network published on its Telegram profile this Friday.

Speculation about Surovikin's whereabouts broke out after the Wagner Group revolt, when several Russian media claimed that he had been detained, an issue on which the Russian Government did not comment.. At the end of August, the Kremlin confirmed his dismissal amid new rumors about his future within the Defense Ministry.

Prigozhin led a rebellion on June 24 that broke out after the mercenary group accused the Russian Army of allegedly attacking one of its training camps.. Faced with an apparent escalation, Surovikin spoke out in a video and asked his leader to calm the situation, as well as the withdrawal of his men.