Viktor Sokolov (naval officer)
Viktor Nikolayevich Sokolov (Russian: Виктор Николаевич Соколов; born 4 April 1962) is an officer of the Russian Navy. He holds the rank of admiral, and since 2022 has been the commander of the Black Sea Fleet.
Viktor Sokolov | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Виктор Николаевич Соколов |
| Born | 4 April 1962 Bender, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union (now Moldova) |
| Allegiance | Soviet Union Russia |
| Service/ | Soviet Navy Russian Navy |
| Years of service | 1980–present |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | Primorsky Flotilla Kola Flotilla N. G. Kuznetsov Naval Academy |
| Awards | Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" Fourth Class Order of Nakhimov Order of Military Merit Order of Naval Merit |
In 2016, as deputy commander, Sokolov was in charge of a detachment of the Northern Fleet engaged in operations off the coast of Syria during the Russian intervention there. After several months of operations, Sokolov was thanked for his services by the Chief of the General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov, and returned with the taskforce to the fleet's homebases in Northern Russia. In January 2020 he left his post as deputy commander of the Northern Fleet to take up his new role as head of the N. G. Kuznetsov Naval Academy. In August 2022 during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, he was appointed to command the Black Sea Fleet.
Sokolov has not been seen since Ukraine claimed his death on 22 September 2023 when the Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastopol, Crimea, was hit by Storm Shadow cruise missiles fired by Ukraine in Operation Crab Trap. The Russian government denied that he had been killed and published a video purporting to show him still alive.