Putin’s Key Kremlin Aide on Ukraine Unrest Resigns, Ally Says

(Bloomberg) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin’s longtime Kremlin aide Vladislav Surkov, who was responsible for handling separatist forces in Ukraine, quit over unspecified policy differences, said his longtime ally Alexei Chesnakov.

The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there was no official decree on Surkov’s resignation and that there had been no change in policy.

The contradictory statements come at a time of new hopes for ending the violence in eastern Ukraine, where Russia backs separatists in the Donbas and Luhansk regions. Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, have agreed to continue prisoner exchanges and the withdrawal of some troops. The two will hold a second meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the coming months to try to reach an agreement to end the conflict.

“Surkov’s departure would give Putin more flexibility,” said Gleb Pavlovsky, a former Kremlin adviser often critical of the authorities. “Surkov has become too toxic for Ukraine and he tied himself too closely with Donbas separatists.”

Surkov has been the Kremlin’s point person for the separatist regions in Ukraine and a key negotiator for the Russian side. He couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Chesnakov, another former Kremlin official and Surkov’s aide, wrote on his telegram channel and later confirmed to Bloomberg by message that Surkov had quit over policy differences. “During the next month he will be busy meditating,” he said.

“I don’t have any information about his resignation and any comments that Ukraine policy has changed are not true and just reflect a personal opinion,” said Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov in a voice message.

Chesnakov declined to elaborate on what changes in the Kremlin’s policy on Ukraine led Surkov to resign.

The statement from Surkov’s ally came days after Putin appointed former Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak as a deputy head of the presidential administration. Kozak had previously been responsible for Russia’s economic support for Donbas. He also oversaw the prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine and natural gas negotiations with Ukraine.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ilya Arkhipov in Moscow at iarkhipov@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Gregory L. White at gwhite64@bloomberg.net, Andrew Davis, James Amott

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