Sergei Shoigu

Template:Short description Template:Protection padlock Template:Redirect-multi Template:Use dmy dates Template:Lead too short Template:Infobox officeholder Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Efn Template:Efn (born 21 May 1955) is a Russian politician and military officer who has served as secretary of the Security Council since 2024. He served as Minister of Defence of Russia from 2012 to 2024. Shoigu served as the chairman of the Council of Ministers of Defense of the Commonwealth of Independent States from 2012 to 2024.<ref name="Seibt">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kirby">Template:Cite news</ref>

Shoigu was the Minister of Emergency Situations from 1991 to 2012. He briefly served as the governor of Moscow Oblast in 2012. A close confidant and ally of president Vladimir Putin, Shoigu belongs to the siloviki of Putin's inner circle.<ref name="Seibt" /><ref name="Kirby" /> He was entrusted with the task of supervising the invasion of Ukraine since 2022. A feud between Shoigu and Yevgeny Prigozhin led to a mutiny by the Wagner Group in June 2023. The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Shoigu on charges of alleged war crimes during the invasion of Ukraine.

In May 2024, Putin replaced Shoigu with Andrey Belousov as defense minister, appointing the former to be the secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation.<ref name=nbc1>Template:Cite web</ref>

Early life and education

Shoigu was born on 21 May 1955 in Chadan, Tuvan Autonomous Oblast, to an ethnic Tuvan father, newspaper editor Kuzhuget Shoigu Template:Efn (1921–2010) and a Ukrainian-born Russian mother, Alexandra Yakovlevna Shoigu (1924–2011). Alexandra Shoigu grew up in the Donbas town of Kadiivka and had traumatizing experiences while under detention of the German occupation forces during World War II.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in her career she became a member of the Tuva Regional Council of People's Deputies. Kuzhuget Shoigu rose to secretary of the Tuvan Regional Committee of the Communist Party,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> becoming a major figure in the Communist power structure of the republic.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref>

After graduating from Kyzyl Number 1 School in the Tuvan ASSR,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Shoigu studied at the Krasnoyarsk Polytechnic Institute. Shoigu graduated in 1977 with a degree in civil engineering.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Early career and first steps in CPSU

Shoigu worked in construction projects nationwide for the next decade, advancing from low levels to become an executive. In 1988, Shoigu became a minor functionary in the Abakan branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and then in the Komsomol for a few years. In 1990, Shoigu moved to Moscow from Siberia, and was appointed deputy chairman of the State Architecture and Construction Committee of the Russian Federation,<ref name="bestpeopleofrussia">Template:Cite web</ref> assisted by his father's connections. Future president Boris Yeltsin had held a similar position in the Construction Committee, and had also come from a civil engineering and party background, so Shoigu gained Yeltsin's trust.<ref name=":0" />

Minister of Emergency Situations (1991–2012)

In 1991, Yeltsin appointed him head of the newly established Russian Rescue Corps, responsible for the rescue and disaster response system. The Rescue Corps replaced the previous Soviet civil defense system and soon absorbed the 20,000-strong militarized Civil Defense Troops of the Ministry of Defense, with Shoigu being appointed chairman of the State Committee of the Russian Federation for Civil Defense, Emergency Situations, and Disaster Response. Civil Defense remained a quasi-military organization in continuation of Soviet practice and Shoigu was politically involved, such as an unsuccessful attempt to evacuate Russian-backed Afghan president Mohammad Najibullah in 1992 and the intended distribution of weapons from the Civil Defense stocks to Yeltsin supporters during the October 1993 coup. In keeping with the militarized nature of Russian civil defense, Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> colonel general in 1998,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The committee was renamed the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MChS) in 1994, making Shoigu a government minister. He became popular because of his hands-on management style and high visibility during emergency situations, such as floods, earthquakes and acts of terrorism.<ref name=":0" /> Under Shoigu, the responsibilities of the ministry were expanded to take over the Russian State Fire Service in 2002, making the MChS Russia's third-largest force structure.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1999 he became one of the leaders of the Russian pro-government party Unity, created by the Kremlin in opposition to the anti-Yeltsin elites of the Fatherland – All Russia alliance. Unity allowed for the rise of Vladimir Putin to president and in 2001 was combined into the ruling United Russia party, although Shoigu was the only delegate to vote against the merger.<ref name=":0" /> In 1999, Shoigu was awarded Russia's most prestigious state award: Hero of the Russian Federation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In March 2009, he proposed a law that would criminalize criticism of Soviet military tactics during World War II, which resulted in large numbers of Soviet casualties.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Governor of Moscow Oblast (2012)

With over twenty years of service as Minister of Emergency Situations, Shoigu established a close relationship with Vladimir Putin, and was rewarded by being appointed Governor of Moscow Oblast in 2012,<ref>Shoigu Tipped as Next Moscow Region Governor, The Moscow Times.</ref> taking office on 11 May of that year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Minister of Defence (2012–2024)

Template:See also On 6 November 2012, Shoigu was appointed Minister of Defence by Putin, succeeding Anatoly Serdyukov, who had implemented sweeping reforms of the Russian Armed Forces in response to performance in the Russo-Georgian War. According to expert Sergey Smirnov, the so called "Petersburg group" of siloviki (Sergei Ivanov, Sergey Chemezov and Viktor Ivanov) had wanted one of its associates to succeed Serdyukov, but Putin was reluctant to strengthen the clan and opted for the neutral Shoigu.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As defence minister, Shoigu on multiple occasions accompanied Putin during weekend breaks that the pair would spend at undisclosed locations in the Siberian countryside.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Serdyukov was unpopular with senior military leaders and seen by them as a civilian with no military background, something that Shoigu attempted to address by symbolically tying himself to the military through wearing an army general's uniform, reviving historical units dissolved under the reforms, and reinstating officials dismissed by Serdyukov. Furthermore, Shoigu appealed for support for reform within the army rather than taking a confrontational stance, appointed deputy ministers of defense from the military, and removed Serdyukov-appointed civilian tax service officials from the top echelons of the Ministry of Defense.<ref name="Klein">Template:Cite news</ref>

As defence minister, Shoigu continued aspects of Serdyukov's attempts at modernizing the Russian Armed Forces through reform. This included the creation of the Special Operations Forces Command to facilitate rapid intervention in conflicts within the perceived Russian sphere of influence and counterterrorism efforts. Serdyukov's goals of increasing the share of the Russian Armed Forces made up of professional contract servicemen rather than conscripts continued under Shoigu. However, the demographic challenge of a decreasing pool of military-aged and -eligible males forced him to increase national conscription quotas in early 2013, including even North Caucasians perceived as a security risk by authorities such as Chechens. This followed on from Serdyukov's initiatives of reducing available draft exemptions.<ref name="Klein" />

In November 2012, Shoigu decided to resurrect the tradition of Suvorov and Nakhimov cadets participating in the 9 May parade.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In July 2013 Shoigu ordered commanders to begin every morning in the barracks with a rendition of the Russian anthem, to compile an obligatory military-patriotic book reading list and to take responsibility for the preparation of demobilization albums (a type of memento scrapbook, which in Russian military tradition is given to conscripts upon completion of their service).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In August 2013 he ordered all Defense Ministry civilian workers, other staff and management employees to wear uniforms.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In February 2014, Shoigu said Russia was planning to sign agreements with Vietnam, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, the Seychelles, Singapore, and several other countries either to house permanent military bases and/or to house airplane refueling stations in those countries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Over the next year, only an agreement with Vietnam was effectively signed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Activities related to treaties and military exercises

Template:See also From early 2013 the Shoigu ministry made use of snap exercises as a means to ensure combat readiness of the Eastern Military District, the Western Military District, and the Central Military District. Already in 2015 western observers mentioned the Vienna Document while they spoke of "the deteriorating European security environment.. producing an action-reaction cycle involving Russia, NATO and other European countries, all seeking to demonstrate the readiness of their armed forces."<ref name="sipri">Template:Cite book</ref>

In March 2015 Russia under Shoigu's defence ministry halted all activities related to the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In October 2016 Shoigu hosted 56 representatives from 31 different OSCE nations, with Shoigu stating that the observers "had a chance to see with their own eyes that Russia had fully implemented its obligations on ensuring confidence and security in Europe". The observers were also shown new weapons deployed to the Russian Aerospace Force, Ground and Airborne Forces. The previous visit of the OSCE observers took place in 2011.<ref name="taosce">Template:Cite news</ref>

Activities related to the revolution in Ukraine

Template:See also

In July 2014, Ukraine opened a criminal case against Shoigu. He was accused of helping to form "illegal military groups" in Eastern Ukraine who at the time fought against the Ukrainian army.<ref name="wqad">Template:Cite web</ref> The Ukrainian authorities alleged that Shoigu coordinated all of DPR Supreme Commander Igor Girkin's actions, supplying him and "other terrorist leaders" with "the most destructive weapons" since May and instructing him directly, with Putin's approval.<ref name="dbeast">Template:Cite news</ref>

In July 2016 Shoigu said that he had "deployed more air defense systems in the southwest [of Russia]" and "also deployed a 'self-sufficient' contingent of troops in Crimea", adding "Since 2013 ... we have formed four divisions, nine brigades and 22 regiments. They include two missile brigades armed with Iskander missile complexes, which has allowed to boost fire power to destroy the potential adversary."<ref name="rebeef">Template:Cite news</ref>

In July 2018 Shoigu warned that the Poroshenko administration of Ukraine was not fulfilling the Minsk agreements which were signed in order to end the war in Donbas.<ref name="kyivnot">Template:Cite news</ref>

Activities related to Syria

Template:Main

On 30 September 2015, Russia began a military operation in Syria. The operation was carried out by the Russian Aerospace Forces, with the support of the Russian Navy and Bashar al-Assad's Syrian Armed Forces.

On 16 December 2015, speaking to the members of the State Duma behind closed doors, Shoigu mentioned the possibility of the Russian forces "reaching the Euphrates" in Syria.<ref name="shoigueuphrates">Template:Cite web</ref>

In June 2016, Russia Today, while reporting minister Shoigu's visit to Hmeymim air base, showed RBK-500 ZAB-2.5SM incendiary cluster bombs being loaded onto Russian airplanes. After this information was discovered to be inconsistent with official Russian statements, the video was removed. It was later reinstated. An editorial note below the video made no mention of the weapon, saying a frame in the video has caused "concern for personnel safety" because of a pilot's close-up. "Upon re-evaluation it was deemed that the frame did not pose any risks; it had since been restored and the video is up in its original cut", the RT statement said.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="indybomb">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 11 December 2017, days after declaring Syria had been "completely liberated" from ISIL and with the campaign liberating the western bank of the Euphrates in its final days, Putin visited the Russian base in Syria, where he announced that he had ordered the partial withdrawal of the forces deployed to Syria.<ref name="bbctw">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="krusy">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="dtps">Template:Cite news</ref> Several hours later, Shoigu said the troops had already begun to return.<ref name="newsru">Template:Cite web</ref>

On 26 December 2017, Shoigu said that Russia had set about "forming a permanent grouping" at the Tartus naval facility and the Hmeymim airbase, after Putin approved their structure and personnel strength.<ref name="shoigutassperm">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="reutersestablperm">Template:Cite news</ref> On the same day, the upper chamber of parliament approved the ratification of an agreement between Russia and Syria on expanding the Tartus naval facility, which envisages turning it into a full-fledged naval base.<ref name="tassuh">Russia's upper house ratifies agreement on naval base in Syria's Tartus TASS, 26 December 2017.</ref>

On 17 September 2018, during multiple missile strikes by Israeli F-16 jets at targets in western Syria, Russia's Il-20 ELINT reconnaissance plane returning to Khmeimim Air Base, with 15 Russian servicemen on board, was inadvertently downed by a Syrian S-200 surface-to-air missile. Russia's defence minister the following day blamed Israel's military for the accident<ref name="tassshoigu">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and re-affirmed its stance in a minute-by-minute report presented on 23 September.<ref name="konashenkovtass">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="konashenkovRG">Template:Cite web</ref> Early on 20 September, Russia's government-run news agency reported Russia had announced multiple areas of eastern Mediterranean Template:Pprimenear Syria, Lebanon, and Cyprus" shut for air and sea traffic until 26 September, due to the Russian Navy's drills in the area.<ref>В Восточном Средиземноморье закрыты морские районы в связи с ракетными пусками ВМФ РФ Interfax, 20 September 2018.</ref> Following the shoot down incident, Shoigu on 24 September said that within two weeks, the Syrian army would receive S-300 air-defense missile systems to strengthen Syria's combat air defence capabilities; a series of other military measures were announced such as radio-electronic jamming of "satellite navigation, onboard radars and communications systems used by military aircraft attacking targets in Syrian territory", in the areas of the Mediterranean off the Syrian coast.<ref name="tassshoigus300">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="shoigukommer">Template:Cite web</ref>

Shoigu said in August 2021 that Russia had tested 320 new weapons over the course of its campaign in Syria.<ref name="tasshoigu">Template:Cite news</ref>

In Medvedev government

Shoigu was reappointed as defence minister in 2018 in the Medvedev second government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In Mishustin government

Shoigu was reappointed as defence minister in 2020 in the Mishustin government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In an August 2021 "Solovyov Live" YouTube channel interview, Shoigu said referring to his tenure in the Ministry that "The requirements for fulfilling the defense procurement plan have risen dramatically. Over the past nine years, we have received 15,500 weapon systems for the ground forces. In 1999–2002, we had gotten 10 or 19 aircraft at best, that is, fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft all together. That's why now that we receive 140–150 aircraft annually, this is quite a different story."<ref name="tasshoigu" />

In August 2021, Shoigu praised military cooperation between Russia and China.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Activities related to 2022 invasion of Ukraine

On 29 August 2021, Shoigu was recorded as saying that "Russia doesn't consider Ukraine as threat", while he expressed the hope that the situation in Ukraine would ultimately change and the "nationalist mayhem" would be stopped. Shoigu said that the Ukrainians "are not just our neighbors, we are a single people".<ref name="tass29">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Unreliable source?

On 11 February 2022, Shoigu met UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace. Shoigu denied that Russia was planning an invasion of Ukraine.<ref name="wallr">Template:Cite news</ref> Wallace agreed at the meeting which also included General Valery Gerasimov<ref name="ppwall">Template:Cite news</ref> that it was important to implement the Minsk agreements "as a clear way forward".<ref name="walltass">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 24 February 2022, Russia launched a large-scale military invasion of Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Shoigu said the purpose of the invasion "is to protect the Russian Federation from the military threat posed by Western countries, who are trying to use the Ukrainian people in the fight against our country".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The sources say the decision to invade Ukraine was made by Putin and a small group of war hawks in Putin's inner circle, including Sergei Shoigu and Putin's national security adviser Nikolai Patrushev.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a 11 March video conference with Putin, Shoigu claimed that "everything is going to plan".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 24 April, Putin decided to broadcast with English subtitles an 11-minute long Siege of Mariupol situation report meeting with Shoigu.<ref name="krushoigu">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 13 May, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin initiated a telephone conversation with Shoigu, the first call since 18 February. The call lasted about an hour with Austin urging an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.<ref name="thehill-20220513">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="dod-20220513">Template:Cite web</ref>

Also on 13 May, former FSB officer and former DPR Supreme Commander Igor Girkin harshly criticized Shoigu, accusing him of "criminal negligence" in conducting the invasion.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 16 August, Shoigu said that Russia does not need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, as "its main purpose is to deter a nuclear attack. Its use is limited to extraordinary circumstances."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

At the 10th Moscow Conference on International Security in August 2022, Shoigu hosted 35 defense ministers from Asia, Africa and Latin America.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He described South Africa as a "friendly state" and that South Africa's support has helped counter NATO pressure on Russia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shoigu and Putin attended the Template:Ill military exercise in the Russian Far East. Beyond Russian troops, the exercises also included military forces from China, India, Mongolia and several post-Soviet states, among others.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

After large Ukrainian counteroffensives in September 2022, Igor Girkin said that Shoigu should be executed by firing squad.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Russia-installed governor of Ukraine's Kherson region Kirill Stremousov said in a video shared on social media that "Many are saying that the Defense Minister – who allowed things to come to this – should simply shoot himself like a [real] officer."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 21 September 2022, Shoigu said in a televised speech that Russia was not so much at war with Ukraine and the Ukrainian army as with the "collective West" and NATO.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In September 2022, Shoigu claimed that 5,397 Russian soldiers had been killed in the war in Ukraine.<ref name="meduza-casualties">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He said that the 2022 Russian mobilization is being carried out to control "already liberated territories" in Ukraine. According to Shoigu, it is planned to mobilize 300,000 reservists.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Shoigu said the mobilized people could only be sent to combat zones after "training and combat coordination".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, some of the mobilized Russian men were killed less than two weeks after being drafted, meaning conscripted civilians are being sent to a combat zone without basic military training.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 28 October, Shoigu said that 82,000 mobilized reservists had already been deployed in the combat zone.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 12 October 2022, the independent Russian media project iStories reported that more than 90,000 Russian soldiers had been killed, seriously wounded or gone missing in Ukraine, citing sources close to the Kremlin.<ref name="meduza-casualties" />

On 23 October 2022, Shoigu said, without providing evidence, that Ukraine could escalate the war with a dirty bomb—or an explosive that contains radioactive waste material. The UK, US and French governments rejected what they called "Russia's transparently false allegations" against Ukraine,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> adding: "The world would see through any attempt to use this allegation as a pretext for escalation."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 1 November 2022, Shoigu admitted that the Russian military was destroying Ukrainian energy facilities.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 6 December 2022, he said that Russian forces are "inflicting massive strikes" on Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 21 December 2022, Shoigu said that the war in Ukraine would continue in 2023 "until the tasks are completed".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He declared that victory was "inevitable" and claimed that Russian troops were fighting what he called "neo-Nazism and terrorism".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 18 April 2023, Shoigu met with Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu in Moscow. Shoigu said that their countries' military cooperation was a "stabilising" force in the world.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> They discussed expanding military cooperation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 28 April 2023, he met with Indian Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation defence ministers' meeting in New Delhi, India.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 6 June 2023, Shoigu said that Ukrainian "offensive attempts were thwarted, the enemy was stopped, Russian soldiers and officers showed courage and heroism in the battles", while claiming Ukraine had suffered "significant and incomparable casualties".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 20 June 2023, Shoigu stated that the Ukrainian counteroffensive began on June 4, and since then Ukraine had launched 263 attacks on Russian positions, all of which have been unsuccessful, and that Russian forces had lost no territory or settlements. The statement, which is directly contradictory to publicly available information, has been assessed by the ISW as "even-keeled" and an adaption to Russian command strategy following the chaos in the Russian information space during the Kharkiv and Kherson counteroffensives of 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In July 2023, the UK Ministry of Defense reported that Russia had suffered an average of around 400 casualties per day for 17 months.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As of July 2023, the Russian Ministry of Defense was still keeping secret the actual number of casualties.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In July 2023, Shoigu and a Chinese delegation led by Communist Party Politburo member Li Hongzhong arrived in North Korea for the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and North Korean Defense Minister Kang Sun-nam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 23 April 2024, Shoigu’s deputy Timur Ivanov was arrested for taking bribes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Falling out with Wagner

On 5 May 2023, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin blamed Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov for "tens of thousands" of Wagner casualties, saying "Shoigu, Gerasimov, where ... is the ammunition? They came here as volunteers and are dying so you can sit like fat cats in your luxury offices."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In a video released on 23 June 2023 at the start of the Wagner Group rebellion, Prigozhin said that Russian government justifications for the Russian invasion of Ukraine were based on lies.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He accused the Russian Defense Ministry under Shoigu of "trying to deceive society and the president and tell us how there was crazy aggression from Ukraine and that they were planning to attack us with the whole of NATO".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to Prigozhin, "Shoigu killed thousands of the most combat-ready Russian soldiers in the first days of the war. The mentally ill scumbags decided 'It's okay, we'll throw in a few thousand more Russian men as 'cannon fodder'. 'They'll die under artillery fire, but we'll get what we want'."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Despite being the target of Prigozhin's ire, Shoigu made no public appearances during the incident, leading Russian media to speculate that he had lost Putin's confidence and that his removal had been a condition of the agreement that ended the rebellion on 24 June. However, on 26 June, the Russian Ministry of Defence published a video allegedly showing Shoigu meeting Russian officers in Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Secretary of the Security Council

On 12 May 2024, soon after Putin's re-election, Shoigu replaced Nikolai Patrushev as Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation.<ref name="sky1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to analysts, the replacement of Sergei Shoigu by Andrey Belousov as defense minister signals that Putin is preparing for a long war of attrition against Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 25 June 2024, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Shoigu on charges of alleged war crimes for missile strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure.<ref name=tg5>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="bbc5">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 5 August 2024 Shoigu visited Tehran for high-level meetings with the new Pezeshkian government, the General Staff of Iran and members of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.<ref name="usn1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="ala1">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 4 and 17 June 2025, Shoigu visited Pyongyang to meet with Kim Jong-un, amid calls in Russian state media for increased North Korean military support in the war in Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Sanctions

On 23 February 2022, the European Union considered Shoigu responsible for actively supporting and implementing actions and policies that undermine and threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine as well as the stability or security in Ukraine. Therefore the European Union added Shoigu to the list of natural and legal persons, entities and bodies set out in Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 269/2014.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On 25 February 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the United States added Shoigu to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shoigu was sanctioned by the UK government in 2022 in relation to the Russo-Ukrainian War.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On 28 February 2022, the Government of Canada "further amended its Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations to add eighteen members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation responsible for" Russian actions in Ukraine, "including President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Defence Sergei Shoigu, Minister of Justice Konstantin Chuychenko, and Finance Minister Anton Siluanov".<ref name="gocsr">Template:Cite news</ref>

Personal life

According to The Siberian Times, Shoigu is a polyglot who is known to speak eight languages other than Russian fluently, including English, Japanese, Chinese, Tuvan, and Turkish.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Unreliable source?<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Family

Sergei Shoigu was born to Kuzhuget Sereevich Shoigu (1921–2010) and Alexandra Yakovlevna Shoigu (née Kudryavtseva, 1924–2011).<ref name="tuvaonline.ru">Template:Cite web</ref> His father was born Shoigu Seree oglu Kuzhuget. His name order was changed because of a passport error, according to the Tuva official line. More likely, he Russified the name from Turkic oglu 'son of...'.Template:Citation needed Kuzhuget was an editor of a regional newspaper. He later worked in the Communist Party and for the Soviet authorities. He was the secretary of the Tuva Party Committee. He retired with the rank of first deputy chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Tuva ASSR.<ref name="tuvaonline.ru" />

Shoigu's father led the Tuvan State Archives. He spent six years as the editor of the newspaper Pravda. He wrote the novels Time and People, Feather of the Black Vulture (2001), Tannu Tuva: the Country of Lakes and Blue Rivers (2004).<ref name="tuvaonline.ru" />

Shoigu's mother Alexandra was born in the village of Yakovlev in the Oryol Oblast. From there, shortly before the Great Patriotic War, her family moved to Kadiivka in the Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. A zootechnician, Alexandra was an Honored Worker of Agriculture of the Republic of Tuva. From 1979 she was the head of the Planning Department of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic. She was repeatedly elected deputy of the Supreme Soviet (parliament) of the Tuva ASSR.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Sergei's great uncle, Seren Kuzhuget, was the commander of the Tuvan People's Revolutionary Army from 1929 to 1938.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Sergei has two sisters: Larisa Kuzhugetovna Shoigu (1953–2021),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> who was a deputy of the State Duma; and Irina Zakharova (born 1960), a psychiatrist.<ref name="Slon.ru">Template:Cite web</ref>

Shoigu married Irina Alexandrovna Shoigu (née Antipina). She is president of the business tourism company Expo-EM. They have two daughters, Yulia<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (1977) and Kseniya (1991).<ref name="Slon.ru" /> According to Alexei Navalny, Kseniya is suspected to be a figurehead of her father in the ownership of a palace in the outskirts of Moscow, valued at about £12 million. In 2012, the estate was transferred to the formal ownership of Yelena Antipina.<ref>Template:Cite web Template:Cbignore</ref> Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kseniya posted a video on social media of her daughter and herself wearing the colours of the Ukrainian flag.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to the US Department of the Treasury, Kseniya Shoigu "made tens of millions of dollars on state construction projects and has business interests directly tied to the Ministry of Defence".<ref name="Kseniya" /> In May 2023, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin condemned the luxurious lifestyle of the children of Russia's top officials and in particular singled out Shoigu's son-in-law Template:Ill for not joining the Russian army.<ref name="Kseniya">Template:Cite news</ref> In August 2023, it was announced that Shoigu's daughter and her husband Stolyarov had separated, allegedly at the instigation of Shoigu and Putin.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Shoigu is alleged to have an affair with Elena Shebunova from the early 2000s until 2017.<ref name="auto1">Template:Cite web</ref> According to similar sources, allegedly Shoigu and Shebunova have three children: Danila (2001), Dasha (2008), and Stepan (2011).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="auto1" /> Danila is pursuing a music career under the stage-name Sheba (or Sheba Singer).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Hobbies

Shoigu enjoys studying the history of Russia, especially Peter the Great's time and the era between 1812 and 1825 (which includes the French invasion of Russia and the Decembrist revolt).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shoigu collects Indian, Chinese, and Japanese swords and daggers. He enjoys bard songs and plays the guitar. He does water color paintings and graphics. He enjoys carpentry, and has shown some of his work to Putin.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite tweet</ref>

Religion

Shoigu stated in 2008 that he was baptized in the Russian Orthodox Church at the age of five, rebutting rumors that he was a practitioner of shamanism or Buddhism like many Tuvans.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2023, the largest 12-story Buddhist monastery in Russia, Thubten Shedrub Ling, opened in Kyzyl, built on the initiative of Sergei Shoigu with financial support from the foundation named after him.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Honours

Russian

Hero of the Russian Federation
Order of St Andrew with swords
Order of Merit for the Fatherland 1st class
Order of Merit for the Fatherland 2nd class
Order of Merit for the Fatherland 3rd class
Order of Alexander Nevsky
Order of Honour
Order for Personal Courage (USSR)
Medal "For the Return of Crimea"
Medal Defender of a Free Russia
Medal "In Commemoration of the 850th Anniversary of Moscow"
Medal "In Commemoration of the 300th Anniversary of Saint Petersburg"
Medal "In Commemoration of the 1000th Anniversary of Kazan"
Three Medals "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" (Ministry of Defence)
Medal "For Diligence in Engineering Tasks" (Ministry of Defence)
Medal "200 Years of the Ministry of Defence" (Ministry of Defence)
Medal of Great Awareness in Geo-political Affairs (Foreign Ministry)
Medal "200 Years of the Ministry of Internal Affairs" (MVD)
Medal "For Merit of the Stavropol Territory"
Honoured Rescue Worker of the Russian Federation
Order of Rightitude (Ministry of Internal Affairs – for services to being correct on the territory of the Russian Federation)
Order of "Merit of the Altai Territory"
Honorary Citizen of Kemerovo Oblast
Honorary Citizen of Tula Oblast<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Foreign

Medal of the Order of Courage (Abkhazia)
First Class of the Order of Friendship (Kazakhstan)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Medal of the Order "Danaker" (Kyrgyzstan)
Military Class of the Order pro Merito Melitensi
Medal of the Order of the Red Banner (Mongolia)
Grand Commander of the Order of the Union of Burma (Myanmar) Sithu class<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Grand Cross with silver star of the Order of Ruben Dario (Nicaragua)
First Class of the Order of the Serbian Flag (Serbia)
Medal of the Uatsamonga Order (South Ossetia)
Military Commonwealth Medal (Syria)
Medal of the Friendship Order (Vietnam)

Notes

Template:Notelist

References

Template:Reflist

External links

Template:Sister project links

Template:S-start Template:S-off Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft |- Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft |- Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft |- Template:S-ppo Template:S-new Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft Template:S-end

Template:Army Generals (Russia) Template:United Russia Leaders Template:Ministers of Emergency Situations (Russia) Template:2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine Template:ICC indictees (NavBox) Template:Portal bar Template:Authority control