As Russia’s protracted war in Ukraine continues to drain the country’s military and economic resources, a rare public reckoning has unfolded within the upper echelons of the Defense Ministry. On July 4, the Moscow City Court sentenced former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov to 13 years in a high-security penal colony for embezzlement and large-scale money laundering, marking a significant turn in the Kremlin’s ongoing wartime anti-corruption campaign.

The high-profile trial has captivated observers not only for the scale of the financial crimes involved-totaling billions of rubles-but also because of Ivanov’s influential position in Russia’s defense apparatus. As deputy minister since 2016, Ivanov oversaw military infrastructure and logistics, including the construction of bases, housing for servicemen, and key transport facilities. His portfolio became all the more critical after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which placed enormous logistical demands on Russia’s military.

Ivanov, 49, was convicted of embezzling more than 216 million rubles (approximately $2.8 million) through a scheme involving the purchase of a ferry for the Kerch Strait, which links Russia with occupied Crimea. Prosecutors argued that the price of the vessel was grossly inflated and that Ivanov personally benefited from the transaction.

In a separate charge, Ivanov was also found guilty of laundering an estimated 3.9 billion rubles ($49.5 million) stolen from the now-defunct Interkommerts Bank. According........

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