The Siege and Destruction of Mariupol

Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev, as Chief of the National Defense Management Center of the Russian Federation, oversaw the operational siege, encirclement, and saturation bombardment of Mariupol from February to May 2022.

Under his direct command, Russian forces leveled more than 80% of the city’s residential infrastructure, intentionally bombing the Mariupol Drama Theatre (serving as a designated bomb shelter with large "ДЕТИ" markings) and the Maternity Hospital No. 3, causing thousands of civilian casualties.

International Sanctions and Transfer to PMC Wagner

The UK Government sanctioned Mizintsev in March 2022, citing his role in "using reprehensible tactics and inflicting atrocities against innocent civilians". The EU, US, Switzerland, and Australia subsequently added him to their war crimes sanctions lists.

In April 2023, after being dismissed from his post as Deputy Defense Minister for Logistics by Sergei Shoigu, Mizintsev formally joined PMC Wagner as deputy commander under Yevgeny Prigozhin, taking charge of assault battalion logistics in Bakhmut.