Russia's troubles in Ukraine likely caused leadership shakeup: Pentagon

The Pentagon said on Thursday that Russia's persistent troubles in Ukraine likely led to latest shake-up in military leadership, and urged Moscow to end the war instead turning to new generals to oversee the nearly year-long invasion.

Russia on Wednesday appointed Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to oversee the military campaign in Ukraine. Only last October, Russia had put Sergey Surovikin in that position. Surovikin will now stay on as a deputy of Gerasimov.

"It likely does reflect some of the systemic challenges that the Russian military has faced since the beginning of this invasion," Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder told a news briefing.

"We've talked about some of those things in terms of its logistics problems, command and control problems, sustainment problems, morale and the ... failure to achieve the strategic objectives that they've set for themselves."