Russian President
Vladimir Putin on Tuesday dismissed a veteran, once close adviser who until recently managed Moscow's relations with war-torn Ukraine.
Putin fired Vladislav Surkov, seen as a hardliner by many in Kiev, in a terse two-line statement on the
Kremlin website.
The decree was issued a week after the Kremlin said a senior Ukrainian-born
Russian official, Dmitry Kozak, was now in charge of managing Moscow's relations with
Ukraine, effectively sidelining Surkov.