General Valery Gerasimov has been the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation / First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation since November 2012. General Gerasimov graduated from the Military Academy of Armoured Troops in the USSR in 1987 and graduated from the Military Academy of the Russian Federation Armed Forces’ General Staff in 1997. Afterward, General Gerasimov served as Chief of Staff of the North Caucasian Military District just before the second Chechen War began. He served in this post during the second Chechen War.

The Russian general staff is tasked with developing theoretical and practical aspects of war. In 2013, Gen. Gerasimov published an article about his views on the future of warfare that has become known as the Gerasimov Doctrine in the West. This doctrine includes the use of hybrid warfare, which is a blend of conventional and unconventional warfare, and is mentioned by analysts in describing Russia’s military actions in Ukraine. These methods, including the use of “little green men” without insignia who are in effect Russian special forces, were used in the invasion of Crimea and Eastern Ukraine.

After Russia’s actions in Ukraine, including annexation of Crimea, which is Ukrainian territory, the U.S. and EU placed sanctions on the Russian Federation in 2014. Those sanctions have remained and were strengthened by additional designations by the US Treasury Department in 2017. The war in East Ukraine has been ongoing since 2014 despite two ceasefire agreements.

http://usacac.army.mil/CAC2/MilitaryReview/Archives/English/MilitaryReview_20160228_art009.pdf

https://www.thecipherbrief.com/article/gerasimov-doctrine

http://ukraine.csis.org

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-20270111

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