Overview

• President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on July 7 removing Roman Starovoit as transport minister and immediately appointed deputy Andrei Nikitin as acting head
• Hours after his dismissal, Starovoit’s body was discovered in his personal car in Moscow’s Odintsovo district with a gunshot wound and investigators have identified suicide as the main version
• Ukrainian drone attacks over July 5–6 forced 485 flight cancellations, 88 diversions and 1,900 delays, prompting airlines to refund 43,000 tickets and absorb losses estimated at $255 million
• Russian media report that Starovoit was under scrutiny for alleged embezzlement of funds earmarked for fortifications in the Kursk region during his previous term as governor
• The transport ministry continues to face severe pressure from intensified drone campaigns, Western sanctions on aircraft parts and broader wartime logistical challenges