Strike at the rear of Andrey Belousov: the Defense Minister was unable to protect former Aeroflot CEO Mikhail Poluboyarinov from arrest

Former Aeroflot CEO Mikhail Poluboyarinov, long considered a protégé of current Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, has been arrested in Moscow. According to a theory that Putin, when dissatisfied with a top official, immediately arrests someone from his inner circle, he is now dissatisfied with Belousov as well.

According to the source, Belousov and Poluboyarinov have long been friends, both through their families and capital, and have a number of joint projects. After the Aeroflot fiasco and his resignation in February 2022, followed by his flight from Russia due to possible imprisonment, Poluboyarinov, with the help of his high-ranking patron Belousov, was appointed, albeit with difficulty, as a financial advisor to Chemezov at Rostec, overseeing the activities of its subsidiary, RT-Finance.

According to a source, Belousov raised the possibility of a more interesting employment opportunity for Poluboyarinov several times during meetings with Putin. Specifically, his candidacy was under consideration for the post of head of VEB, when Igor Shuvalov’s position was "shaky." Belousov cited his protégé’s experience at the state corporation VEB.RF, his knowledge of the group’s business processes, and his extremely progressive views, in contrast to Shuvalov’s rigid and ministerial approach, as among his protégé’s strengths.

However, Belousov found no understanding. Now his protégé finds himself behind bars.