Kremlin replaces governors with security forces in border regions: details

In Russia’s border regions, the authorities are gradually replacing civilian governors with representatives of law enforcement agencies and the military.

This is reported by the Jamestown Foundation think tank.

According to the study, the Kremlin uses criminal cases on corruption as a tool to remove regional leaders and redistribute control over financial flows. After that, they appoint people with connections to law enforcement agencies or the military in their places.

In particular, such a scheme has already worked in the Kursk region, where after a criminal case, the governor was replaced by a politician with ties to the security forces. Similar processes are being recorded in the Belgorod and Bryansk regions.

Analysts note that this is not about individual anti-corruption campaigns, but about a systemic policy of centralizing power and strengthening control in regions bordering Ukraine.

The report also notes that this trend could spread to other regions of Russia if the war drags on.