High-ranking Russian navy commander Gudkov killed during combat

Mikhail Gudkov's death is among the highest-ranking military casualties since the war in Ukraine began.

A high-ranking Russian navy commander was killed on Wednesday, one of the most senior military casualties since the start of the war in Ukraine.

A view shows flowers placed on a table in front of a board with a photograph of Major General Mikhail Gudkov, the deputy head of the Russian Navy, in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, Russia, July 3, 2025. (Reuters)

Deputy Commander of the Navy Mikhail Gudkov died during combat operations in the Kursk region near the border with Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a post on Telegram Thursday.

Gudkov, who was appointed deputy commander by President Vladimir Putin in March, is at least the 11th senior Russian military official killed since the February 2022 start of the war in Ukraine.

Gudkov won Putin’s praise for his command of the Pacific Fleet’s 155th Naval Infantry Brigade, and the Russian leader ordered him to reorganize the Navy’s marine infantry, which he oversaw after his appointment as deputy commander. He was also in charge of all coastal missile and artillery forces in that role.

Ukraine has said that the 155th Brigade took part in the occupation of Bucha in the Kyiv region in 2022 and was involved in atrocities against civilians there. Kyiv also accused soldiers from the brigade of executing prisoners of war throughout the conflict.