Russian Ground Forces: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
m national and international perception. the primary perceptions listed. if you can re-write them more neutrally, then so be it
Line 247: Line 247:
The Russian Ground Forces are regarded internationally by governments as a sovereign right of Russia to possess. The leaders of [[NATO]] and [[Europe]] have historically planned their military defense around a conflict with them.
The Russian Ground Forces are regarded internationally by governments as a sovereign right of Russia to possess. The leaders of [[NATO]] and [[Europe]] have historically planned their military defense around a conflict with them.


In the [[West]] one of the views is that they are tough on chaos [[warriors]] that bring order to disorder. Another viewpoint is that they are a partially backward organization that has no significant [[projection of force]] beyond nearby countries such as [[Afghanistan]] and [[Chechnya]].
In the [[West]] one of the views is that they are tough on chaos [[warriors]] that bring order to disorder. Another similiar focus is the interest in the West in their hardware and organization from a technical perspective. Another viewpoint is that they are a partially backward organization that has no significant [[projection of force]] beyond nearby countries such as [[Afghanistan]] and [[Chechnya]].


A more human centered perspective that is notable both within Russia by some civilians and without it's own country for its occasional but flagrant abuse both against it's own [[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5381188.stm]] and civilians
A more human centered perspective that is notable both within Russia by some civilians and without it's own country is about its occasional but flagrant abuse both against it's own [[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5381188.stm]] and civilians


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 17:19, 26 September 2006

Russian Armed Forces
Staff
Services (vid)
Independent troops (rod)
Special operations force (sof)
Other troops
Military districts
History of the Russian military

The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces (Russian: Сухопутные силы России) traditionally referred to as the Army (армия), are the protection of the state border, combat on land, the security of occupied territories, and the crushing defeat of the enemy and his troops. They must be able to achieve these goals both in nuclear war and non-nuclear war, especially without the use of weapons of mass destruction. Furthermore, they must be capable of protecting the national interests of Russia within the framework of its international obligations.

Chain of command

Management of the ground forces is entrusted to the Main Command (Glavkomat) of the Ground Forces based in Moscow. The President of Russia is the Supreme Commander-in-chief of the Russian military, but the head of the ground forces is the commander-in-chief of ground forces - a deputy minister of defense of the Russian Federation, currently Colonel General Alexey Maslov. The Russian Army still uses the traditional forms of reference of Comrade to help solidify the service personel as part of something larger than themselves. During the second inauguration of Putin as President he was refered to by military officers as Comrade Commander.

To the Main Command of the Ground Forces is entrusted the accomplishment of the following objectives:

  • The training of troops for combat, on the basis of the tasks, determined by the General Staff of armed forces.
  • The improvement of the structure and composition, the optimization of number, in such cases it is ancestral troops and special troops.
  • The development of military theory and practice.
  • The development and introduction in the training of troops of field manuals, manuals, and methodology.
  • The improvement of the operational and combat training of the ground forces.

Organization

The ground forces organizationally consist of the military districts (Moscow Military District, Leningrad, North-Caucasian, Volga-Ural, Siberian and Far-Eastern), armies, army corps, motorized rifle (tank), artillery and anti-aircraft artillery divisions, fortified districts, brigades, individual military units, military establishments, enterprises and organizations.

Additionally, the Kaliningrad Special Region, under the command of the Baltic Fleet Commander, has a subordinate Ground and Coastal Defence Forces of the Baltic Fleet with one motor rifle division and one motor rifle brigade. It should also be noted that the Northeastern Group of Troops and Forces in the Kamchatka peninsula, also under naval command, includes a motor rifle brigade stationed at Petropavlovsk.

The branches of service include motorized rifles, tanks, artillery and rocket forces, troop air defense, army aviation, special corps (reconnaissance, signals, radioelectroninc warfare, engineering, radiation, chemical and biological protection, technical support, automobile and the protection of the rear), military units and logistical establishments:

  • Motorized rifle troops - most numerous branch of service, that constitutes the basis of ground forces and the nucleus of their battle formations. They are equipped with powerful armament for destruction of ground-based and aerial targets, missile complexes, tanks, artillery and mortars, anti-tank guided missiles, antiaircraft missile systems and installations, effective means of reconnaissance and control.
  • Tank troops - main impact force of ground forces and the powerful means of armed struggle, intended for the solution of the most important combat problems.
  • Artillery and Rocket Forces - main firepower and the most important operational means in the solution of combat problems by the crushing defeat of groupings of enemy. See Main Agency of Missiles and Artillery.
  • PVO - Air Defense Troops, ares one of the basic weapon for the destruction of enemy aviation. It consists of surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft artillery and radio-technical units and subdivisions.
  • Army aviation, while intended for the direct support of the Ground Forces, is now under the control of the Air Forces (VVS).

Current Strength and Order of Battle

Composition

  • Personnel: est. total 395,000 including est. 190,000 conscripts and 35,000 personnel of the Airborne Forces (VDV).[1]
  • Divisions:
    • Tank: 3 (4 & 10 in Moscow Mil District, 5th Gds 'Don' in Siberian MD. 2 TD in SibVO and 21 TD in the Far Eastern MD have disbanded in the last three years).
    • Motorized Rifle: 19
    • Machine-gun/Artillery (static defence): 5-6
    • Artillery: ~3, including 34th Guards in the Moscow MD, 12th in Siberian MD, and possibly 15th? in Far Eastern MD.

Order of Battle

  • Ground & Coastal Defence Forces of the Baltic Fleet:[2]
    • 18th Motor Rifle Division,
    • one Motor Rifle Brigade
  • Far Eastern Military District:
    • HQ 5 Army
    • HQ 35 Army
    • HQ 68 Corps
Russian Army Flag

Current Inventory


  • Aircraft (Helicopters: 1,700)
    • None; all army aviation aircraft were recently transferred to the Air Force


  • Individual Weapons
    • Pistol
      • Makarov PMM | 9x18 PMM, 12 round magazine, main service sidearm
      • Stechkin APS | 9x18 PM, 20 round magazine, capable of fully automatic fire
      • 6P9 PB | 9x18 PM, 8 round magazine, uses a suppressor
      • 6P13 APB | 9x18 PM, 20 round magazine, capable of fully automatic fire, uses a suppressor
      • PSS | 7.62x41 SP-4, 6 round magazine, fires a "special purpose noiseless cartridge"
      • Serdyukov SPS / SR-1 / Gyurza | 9x21 SP-10/11, 18 round magazine, high armor piercing capability
      • Yarygin PYa / MP-443 | 9x19 7N21, 17 round magazine, special high power cartridge, replacing PMM as main service sidearm
      • GSh-18 | 9x19 7N21 or PBP, 18 round magazine, special high power cartridge
    • Submachine Gun
      • PP-19 Bizon | 9x18 PMM or 9x19, 64 round helical magazine
      • AEK-919K Kashtan | 9x18 PMM, 20 30 round magazine capacity
      • PP-90M1 | 9x19 7N21 or 7N31, 64 round helical magazine, 32 round conventional box magazine
      • PP-2000 | 9x19 7N21 or 7N31, 20 or 40 round magazine, can use spare magazine to work as a "butt stock"
      • SR-2M Veresk | 9x21 SP-10/11, 20 or 30 round magazine, high armor piercing capability
    • Shotgun
      • Saiga-12 | 12 Gauge, 8 round magazine, semi-automatic, uses a modified Kalashnikov design
      • TOZ-194 | 12 Gauge, 7 round internal tube magazine, pump action
    • Assault Rifle
      • AK-74M | 5.45x39, 30 round magazine, main service rifle
      • AKS-74U | 5.45x39, 30 round magazine, shortened version of the AK-74, moderate usage
      • AKM | 7.62x39, 30 round magazine, former main service rifle, moderate usage
      • AS Val | 9x39 SP-5 or SP-6, 10 or 20 round magazine, uses an integrated suppressor, widespread usage
      • OC-14 Groza | 9x39 SP-5 or SP-6 or 7.62x39, 20 round 9x39 or 30 round 7.62x39 magazine, bullpup
      • SR-3 Vikhr | 9x39 SP-5 or SP-6, 10 or 20 round magazine, very compact
      • 9A-91 | 9x39 SP-5 or SP-6, 10 or 20 round magazine, compact
      • AN-94 | 5.45x39, 30 round magazine, 2 round burst mode fired at 1800 RPM, designed to replace AK-74M, possibly limited usage
      • AK-103 | 7.62x39, 30 round magazine, modernized AKM, possibly limited usage
    • Machine Gun
      • RPK-74 | 5.45x39, 30 or 45 round magazine or 75 round drum, LMG based on the AK-74, main service SAW
      • RPK | 7.62x39, 30 or 40 round magazine or 75 round drum, former main service GPMG, based on the AKM, limited usage
      • PKM | 7.62x54, belt fed with 100 or 200 or 250 round boxes, uses a heavily modified Kalashnikov design, main service GPMG
      • Pecheneg | 7.62x54, belt fed with 100 or 200 round boxes, GPMG based on and designed to replace the PKM, limited usage
      • NSV | 12.7x108, belt fed with 50 round boxes, main service HMG
      • Kord | 12.7x109, belt fed with 50 round boxes, replacing the NSV as the main service HMG, limited usage
    • Sniper Rifle
      • SVD Dragunov | 7.62x54, 10 round magazine, semi auto, main service sniper rifle
      • Dragunov SVU | 7.62x54, 10 round magazine, semi auto, bullpup variant of the SVD, moderate usage
      • VSS Vintorez | 9x39 SP-5 or SP-6, 10 or 20 round magazine, semi or full auto, uses an integrated suppressor, widespread usage
      • SV-98 | 7.62x54, 10 round magazine, bolt action, limited usage
      • KSVK | 12.7x108, 5 round magazine, semi auto, limited usage
      • OSV-96 | 12.7x108, 5 round magazine, semi auto, can be folded in half, limited usage
    • Anti-Personnel Explosive
    • Anti-Tank Explosive
    • Man-Portable Air-Defence System

National and International Perception

The Russian Ground Forces are regarded internationally by governments as a sovereign right of Russia to possess. The leaders of NATO and Europe have historically planned their military defense around a conflict with them.

In the West one of the views is that they are tough on chaos warriors that bring order to disorder. Another similiar focus is the interest in the West in their hardware and organization from a technical perspective. Another viewpoint is that they are a partially backward organization that has no significant projection of force beyond nearby countries such as Afghanistan and Chechnya.

A more human centered perspective that is notable both within Russia by some civilians and without it's own country is about its occasional but flagrant abuse both against it's own [[1]] and civilians

References

  1. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies, Military Balance 2006, p.154
  2. ^ Kommersant-Vlast, 'Vys Rossiya Armia'. http://www.kommersant.ru/k-vlast/get_page.asp?page_id=2005769-22.htm, 14 May 2002 and 'The Russian Armed Forces Today: A Structural Status Examination' (Journal of Slavic Military Studies, Vol 18 No. 2 2005)

Current strength and status:

  • Kommersant-Vlast's articles in 2002, 2003, and 2005.
  • International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 2006, p.154-64, http://www.iiss.org/publications/the-military-balance
  • A.G. Lenskii, M.M. Tsybin, The Soviet Ground Forces in the Last Years of the USSR, B&K Publishers, St Petersburg, 2001,
  • V.I. Fes'kov, K.A. Kalashnikov and V.I. Golikov, The Soviet Army In The Years Of The Cold War 1945-1991, Tomsk University Publishing House, 2004.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Russian_Ground_Forces&oldid=77935778"