Russian officers "sacked in feud"

The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has dismissed six senior officers from the Defence Ministry.

The Kremlin says the move is part of routine changes in staffing.

But a BBC Russian affairs analyst says the officers include key associates of the Defence Minister, Igor Sergeyev, and their removal is a clear snub to the minister.

He says the changes could be linked to a bitter feud in recent weeks between Marshall Sergeyev and the chief of staff, General Anatoly Kvashnin.

General Kvashnin wants to reduce the size of Russia's strategic nuclear rocket forces by cutting the number of divisions and integrating them into the air force.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service