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Russia Takes New Steps To Secures Its Western Border
With NATO expanding and increasing its bellicosity Russia needed to react. One move is the integration Belarus into its defense sphere. The other is an increase of its military force to cover new threats towards its northwest.
Belarus seems to be a small country when compared to Russia.
But its actually of pretty decent sized country, with roughly 500 kilometer (300 miles) diameter from border to border. It has well established heavy industries and some interesting commodities like potash. Its population of 9.5 million people is highly educated. For Russia it is an important buffer state and the supply route to its exclave around Kaliningrad.
In June of 2020 we saw the first signs of a U.S. engineered 'color revolution' in Belarus. At the beginning of August the protests took off. But just two weeks later the attempt to overthrow the long term leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, was ended. Russia had come to the rescue of the Belorussian government after it had agreed to finally implement the Union State:
In 1999 Russia and Belarus signed a treaty to form a Union State out of Russia and Belarus. It would include free movement, a common defense and economic integration as well as a union parliament. But since then Lukashenko has dragged his feet on the issue. At the end of the last year Putin pressed him again to finally execute the deal. When Lukashenko rejected that Putin shut off the country's economic lifeline from Russia. Belarus did no longer receive subsidized Russian oil that it could refine and sell at market prices to the 'west'. Lukashenko then tried to make nice with the 'west'. He bought U.S. fracking oil. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo came to Minsk. In March the U.S. reopened its embassy in Belarus.
But now the 'west' which Lukashenko had tried to coddle with is trying to get him killed. Every U.S. embassy is also a U.S. regime change base. He would have been better off without one.
As he was the target of an ongoing U.S. led regime change operation, and with economic pressure in direct sight, Lukashenko obviously needed help. Today he finally wised up and capitulated to Moscow on the Union State issue.
It did not take long for Putin to respond. Some 6 hours after the above Reuters report the Kremlin published a note about a Telephone conversation with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko (emphasis added):
Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko at the initiative of the Belarusian side.
Alexander Lukashenko informed Vladimir Putin about the developments following the presidential election in Belarus. Both sides expressed confidence that all existing problems will be settled soon. The main thing is to prevent destructive forces from using these problems to cause damage to mutually beneficial relations of the two countries within the Union State.
In connection with the return to Russia of 32 people who were previously detained in Belarus, a positive assessment was given to close cooperation of the relevant agencies in this regard.
They also agreed on further regular contacts at various levels, and reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening allied relations, which fully meets the core interests of the fraternal nations of Russia and Belarus.
It seems to me that Putin accepted the deal. Lukashenko, and his police, will not hang from a pole. Russia will take care of the problem and the Union State will finally be established.
That does not mean that the color revolution attempt is over. The U.S. and its lackey Poland will not just pack up and leave. But with the full backing from Russia assured, Lukashenko can take the necessary steps to end the riots.
Since then there have been several meetings between Lukashenko and Putin and important parts of Union State agreement have been implemented. Two days ago the latest summit took place in Minsk. In a press conference both leaders empathized their economic cooperation but also mentioned defense issues. With the war in Ukraine ongoing and potential NATO involvement these have become increasingly important.
Belarus has received a number of high end weapon systems and, as Putin announced, will also soon be able to use Russian nukes:
I would like to remind you that, as part of the consistent implementation of the Russia-Belarus military doctrine, we work on joint military planning and have an operational Russia-Belarus regional force grouping. Our countries’ divisions and military units currently undergo coordination training in Belarus. We have created a joint air defence system that is already on combat duty. We have agreed to continue taking all necessary measures to ensure the security of our countries, prioritising training of the troops, improving their combat readiness and continuing the practice of regular joint exercise and other operational and combat training events, mutual supplies of essential weapons and producing new military equipment together.
I believe it is also possible to continue implementing President Lukashenko’s proposal on training the Belarusian Army combat aircraft crews that have been re-equipped for potential use of air-launched ammunition with special warheads. I want to stress that this form of cooperation is not our invention. For example, the United States have conducted similar activities with their NATO allies for decades. These coordinated measures are extremely important in view of the tensions at the external borders of the Union State.
Lukashenko was a bit more specific:
A special thank you, and not just on my behalf or on the part of the military, for fulfilling your promise. Today, an S-400 complex you transferred to Belarus was put on combat duty. Even more importantly, we received an Iskander complex you promised us six months ago.
You have just raised a very sensitive issue, approaching it with great caution. However, you were right to note that we were not the ones who started it. I am talking about training our air force crews in handling special weapons and special warheads. I must tell you that we have prepared our aircraft. It turns out we have had these planes since the Soviet era. We tested them in the Russian Federation and are now working with the Russians to train our crews to pilot planes carrying special warheads. By doing so we are not threatening anyone. I have informed you on several occasions, including during our meetings in St Petersburg, Moscow and in Sochi, that we have major concerns regarding what you call tension along the borders of the Union State, primarily in the West. We felt the need to ensure the security of the Belarusian state. You have made a resolute and very important step to support Belarus. Once again, thank you very much.
Belarus is now protected by a first class long range air defense system, the S-400. It has medium range precision strike capabilities due to Iskander missiles. The air and ground forces of the two militaries are now under a common command. Belorussian planes will soon be able to use nuclear armed missiles and cruise missiles against NATO ground targets.
The Belorussian military is quite small. Its army has only 40,000 soldiers of which less then half are potential frontline units. This is one reason why Belarus is unlikely to join the war in Ukraine. It has long borders with NATO countries that need protection and, without activating reservists, the number of troops it has are barely enough for that purpose. But an Iskander missile fired from Belarus can cover all of Poland which is now NATO's main concentration area for an eventual escalation.
With Russia now backing it Belarus can feel secure. To Russia the Union State means that it has secured an additional 500 kilometer of buffer zone between NATO borders and Moscow.
The move will be welcome in Russia but it does not solve all of Russia's NATO problems. The entering of Sweden and Finland into the U.S. proxy organization has created new ones. It is the reason why the Russian Minister of Defense today announced a significant expansion of the Russian military:
During a Russian Defense Ministry meeting on Wednesday, Shoigu proposed a number of measures to strengthen the security of the Russian Federation, including creating a special grouping of troops on the country’s northwestern border and expanding Russia’s armed forces to amount to 1.5 million servicemen in total, with some 695,000 of them being contract soldiers.
Shoigu’s comments come as Helsinki and Stockholm have submitted bids to join NATO, citing a perceived threat from Russia in light of its ongoing military operation in Ukraine.
…
Shoigu went on to suggest creating a number of new military groupings, including five new artillery divisions, eight bomber aviation regiments, and one fighter regiment, as well as six army aviation brigades.
Previously the Russian military had about 1 million soldiers. Altogether this is a very significant increase with a lot of punching power. Such a growth of manpower and the acquiring the necessary equipment will take at least five years.
I seriously doubt that NATO will be able to match it.
I provided Putin’s introductory remarks at the Ministry of Defence Board Conference on the previous thread. Now, I’ll supply Shoigu’s Report and follow that with Putin’s closing remarks. I’ll not provide any additional emphasis, although there are portions meriting such treatment. Do recall that this report is being made primarily to Russians, a point that should be kept in mind while reading Putin’s words. But there’s a secondary audience–the RoW–and that includes us at MoA. Yes, even the trolls–they need to know they’re working for the wrong side and that side is Anti-Human. Anyway, enough of my preamble:
Sergei Shoigu : Comrade Supreme Commander!
I will start my report with a special military operation.
Today in Ukraine, Russian military personnel are being countered by the combined forces of the West. The United States and its allies are pumping the Kiev regime with weapons, training military personnel, providing intelligence, sending advisers and mercenaries, and waging an information and sanctions war against us.
The Ukrainian leadership resorts to prohibited methods of confrontation, including terrorist attacks, contract killings, and attacks on civilians with heavy weapons. Western countries try not to notice all this, as well as elements of nuclear blackmail, for example, provocations against the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant and the scenario of preparing a so-called dirty nuclear bomb.
It is clear that the current situation is primarily beneficial to the United States, which seeks to use it to maintain global dominance and weaken other countries, including its allies in Europe.
Of particular concern is the buildup of NATO’s forward presence near the borders of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, as well as the West’s desire to prolong military operations in Ukraine as much as possible in order to weaken our country.
After the revelations of Mrs. Merkel, Poroshenko and other politicians about the true goals of the Minsk agreements, it became clear to everyone that Russia was not the source of the conflict in Ukraine, but the reason was the Western-funded coup in Kiev in 2014, which brought anti-Russian forces to power and divided fraternal peoples. This provoked an armed confrontation in the Donbas.
We are working to save the population from genocide and terror.
Russia is always open to constructive and peaceful negotiations.
Russian troops continue to destroy military targets, launch massive precision strikes on the military command system, military-industrial enterprises and related facilities,including energy. The supply chain of foreign weapons is being destroyed, and the military potential of Ukraine is being crushed. At the same time, comprehensive measures are being taken to exclude the death of the civilian population.
As a result, the armed forces of Ukraine suffered significant losses, and a significant part of the weapons and equipment available at the beginning of the operation was destroyed. To make up for the losses, the United States of America and NATO countries have significantly increased their military assistance to the Kiev regime. 27 countries have already spent $ 97 billion on arms supplies to Ukraine, which is much more than the amount left by the Americans in Afghanistan. Some of the Afghan stuff left behind in Afghanistan is in the hands of terrorists and is spreading all over the world. It is not known in whose hands weapons from Ukraine will appear tomorrow.
It should be noted that NATO staff officers, gunners and other specialists are in the combat zone. In the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, more than 500 US and NATO spacecraft are operating, of which more than 70 are military, and the rest are dual ‒ use.
The United States and its allies spend significant funds on providing information and psychological impact on Russia and our allies. We have fully understood what a supposedly free Western press is. Every day, thousands of fakes about events in Ukraine are published according to the same templates by a team from Washington. Hundreds of TV agencies, tens of thousands of print publications, media resources in social networks and instant messengers work for this purpose.
The total silence of the Western media about the war crimes of the Ukrainian military looks like the height of cynicism. At the same time, the Kiev criminal regime of neo-Nazis is being glorified. Terrorist methods of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are presented as legitimate self-defense or passed off as the actions of Russian units. Ukrainian nationalists have taken on the role of detachments. We receive daily data on shootings of AFU servicemen who evade performing combat missions.
To stabilize the situation, protect new territories and conduct further offensive operations, it was necessary to increase the combat and numerical strength of the groups of our troops. For this purpose, a partial mobilization was carried out, it became a criterion for the maturity of Russian society, a serious test for the country and the Armed Forces.
Mobilization plans have not been put into effect since the Great Patriotic War. The system of mobilization training itself was not fully adapted to the new economic relations. Therefore, with the beginning of partial mobilization, we faced difficulties in notifying and calling out citizens who are in reserve.
All the shortcomings had to be corrected on the go: in the shortest possible time, changes were made to the organizational and staff structures of the military command bodies of formations and units, urgent measures were taken to improve all types of support.
Partial mobilization measures were implemented in a timely manner and in full. 300 thousand citizens who are in reserve are called up for military service. An important role in this was played by the consolidated work of federal and regional government bodies.
I would like to emphasize the active civil position of Russians: without waiting for subpoenas, more than 20 thousand people joined the troops as volunteers.
To support the country’s economy, more than 830 thousand citizens working in the military-industrial complex and in a number of other socially significant areas that ensure the state’s vital activity have been released from conscription.
Thanks to the decisions taken by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, mobilized citizens receive the same benefits and guarantees as contract servicemen.
With the mobilized military personnel, training for combat operations is organized from practicing individual skills to combat coordination as part of units.
A huge burden was placed on the military-political bodies. This confirmed the correctness of the decision taken in 2018 to create them. At the same time, much remains to be done to ensure that they fully ensure the readiness of personnel to perform combat tasks.
In general, partial mobilization made it possible to increase the combat capabilities of the troops and intensify combat operations. The troops liberated territory five times larger than that occupied by the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics before February 24. At the end of May, Russian troops completely cleared the large industrial center of Mariupol from the Nazis. The city was transformed by the Kiev regime into a powerful fortified area, the core of which was the industrial zone of the Azovstal plant. As a result of the successful actions of units of the Russian Armed Forces and the Donetsk People’s Militia, more than four thousand militants were killed, 2.5 thousand Azov nationalists and AFU servicemen laid down their weapons and surrendered.
A peaceful life is being established. Today, the ports in Berdyansk and Mariupol are fully functioning. We plan to deploy ship basing points, support for the emergency rescue service and ship repair units of the Navy in them. The Sea of Azov has once again become the internal sea of Russia, as it has been for 300 years of our country’s history.
Overland communication with Crimea by rail and road has been resumed. Railway traffic with the Donbass region is being restored. Cargo has been delivered to Mariupol and Berdyansk and other liberated settlements for several months.
The establishment of control over the North Crimean Canal made it possible to restore water supply to the Crimean Peninsula, which was absent for eight years due to the water and energy blockade.
Russian servicemen show bravery, perseverance and dedication during a special military operation. More than 100 thousand people were awarded state awards, 120 of them were awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. During the special operation, more than 250 thousand regular military personnel gained combat experience.
Today, the Russian Armed Forces are actively involved in establishing peaceful life in the liberated territories. More than 27 thousand hectares of territories have been cleared of mines. In Mariupol, military builders have built 12 residential buildings, and the construction of another six, a kindergarten and a school continues. In Luhansk and Mariupol, the construction of two multifunctional medical centers with state-of-the-art equipment with a capacity of 260 beds was completed in record time.
A lot of work is being done to restore water supply in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. Water pipelines with a total length of more than 200 kilometers were built, and they provided water to more than one and a half million people. The construction of a 194-kilometer-long water pipeline from the Don River is underway, which is guaranteed to provide water supply to Donetsk.
In general, the special military operation demonstrated the high professionalism of commanders, staff commanders at all levels of management, as well as the readiness of military personnel to perform the most complex combat tasks. Our samples of weapons and military equipment have proven their exceptional reliability and efficiency.
A special military operation provides a unique opportunity to analyze modern methods of conducting interspecific operations, the forces and means used to take into account in the plans for improving the Armed Forces.
The country’s leadership and Armed Forces have received unprecedented support from Russian citizens. This clearly shows the unity of the army and society.
This year, the Ministry of Defense has solved and continues to solve a number of other important tasks. At the beginning of the year, together with the CSTO countries, they conducted an operation to stabilize the situation in Kazakhstan, and prevented a “color revolution” in this country.
Russian military groups remain the main guarantor of peace in Syria and Nagorno-Karabakh. During the year, they carried out humanitarian actions, mine clearance operations, and provided medical assistance to the population.
Our nuclear triad is maintained at a level that allows us to guarantee the implementation of strategic deterrence. The high combat readiness of strategic nuclear forces is ensured by an unprecedented level of modernity, brought to 91.3 percent.
The Strategic Missile Forces have completed re-equipping two missile regiments with the Yars mobile ground-launched missile system. Another regiment equipped with the Avangard missile system with a hypersonic gliding cruise block has entered combat duty. Successful launches of the new Sarmat heavy-class missile system during state tests made it possible to start work on its deployment.
The aviation and strategic nuclear forces were replenished with the Tu-160M strategic missile carrier and the Tu-95M aircraft. This year, 73 air patrols were conducted, two of which were conducted jointly with the People’s Liberation Army of China. Nuclear-powered missile submarines perform scheduled combat service in designated areas of the world’s oceans. Another nuclear-powered submarine of the Borey-A project, Generalissimo Suvorov, armed with Bulava ballistic missiles, has been accepted into the Navy. The combat capabilities of the types and branches of the Armed Forces continued to be improved.
The united space system was further developed in the Aerospace Forces, and the sixth Kupol spacecraft was launched, which allows for continuous monitoring of missile-prone areas in the Northern Hemisphere. Training aviation is being systematically developed. The flight time of cadets has been increased by more than a third due to the arrival of new models of training aircraft. This year, the first graduation of female military pilots took place, more than half of the graduates completed their studies with honors.
The Navy received the most modern submarine, six surface ships, three combat boats, 11 vessels and support boats, as well as two coastal missile systems.
Serial deliveries of the sea-based hypersonic missile Zircon have begun. At the final stage is the preparation of the frigate “Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov” with hypersonic missiles on board for combat service in an unplanned area of the World Ocean.
The most important feature of the implementation of the state defense order 2022 was the provision of weapons and equipment to groups of troops that solve the tasks of a special military operation. To increase their combat capabilities, deliveries of the most popular samples were postponed from 2024 and 2025 to 2023. In order to optimize the supply of weapons, a decadal schedule has been formed. Control over its implementation is carried out by a joint task force of the Ministry of Defense, the Military-Industrial Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and organizations of the military-industrial complex.
The amount of financial resources provided for in 2022, taking into account the additional supply of weapons and equipment, made it possible to increase the number of basic samples sent to the troops by 30 percent, ammunition for rocket and artillery weapons and aviation weapons of destruction-from 69 to 109 percent. At the same time, the level of fulfillment of tasks of the state defense order for the main samples was 91 percent.
In 2022, all planned operational and combat training activities were completed, including 14 international exercises of various levels. At the beginning of the year, a series of large-scale naval exercises were held, during which the tasks of countering military threats to Russia from sea and ocean directions were worked out.
The final event of the combat service was the strategic command and staff exercise Vostok-2022. It was attended by more than 51 thousand military personnel, including from the armed forces of 14 foreign countries. A special feature of the exercise was the creation of an international group of troops to solve joint tasks. The exercise demonstrated the ability of established international groups to effectively carry out tasks to ensure regional security.
During a special exercise, the strategic nuclear Forces successfully fulfilled the tasks of delivering a massive nuclear strike in response to the use of weapons of mass destruction by the enemy.
An Arctic expedition was conducted in the eastern sector of the Arctic and on the Chukotka Peninsula. A complex of training and combat activities, research and experiments was carried out. All samples of weapons have confirmed their technical characteristics in the Arctic conditions.
Despite the attempts of the collective West to isolate Russia, we continue to expand the geography of international military and military-technical cooperation.
The Ministry of Defense develops relations with the armed forces of 109 countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. This year we have held 350 significant international events.
The International Army Games have become one of the main events of joint training with the armies of foreign countries. More than five thousand three hundred military personnel from 34 countries participated in the games. The Games, held in 12 countries, were attended by over three million people. During the eight years of the games, 80 training grounds have been modernized, the training and material base of which is actively used for combat training of units.
The annual Army Forum contributed to the strengthening of international military-technical cooperation. It was attended by delegations from 85 foreign countries, and the number of visitors amounted to almost two million people. At the forum, 36 state contracts were signed with defense industry enterprises totaling more than 525 billion rubles. The Forum is an effective, dynamically developing project, which significantly exceeds similar leading international exhibition venues in terms of its performance.
In August, the tenth Moscow Conference on International Security was held, which was attended by more than 700 delegates from 70 countries. This is the largest military-political event in the world in terms of participants.
This year, the First International Anti-fascist Congress was held. It was attended by state and public figures, veterans of the Great Patriotic War, nine foreign delegations and military attaches from 26 countries. The forum participants unequivocally condemned any manifestations of fascism, neo-Nazism and chauvinism in the modern world. The Congress is scheduled to be held annually.
Our higher military school is one of the best in the world. Students and cadets from 55 countries study at the universities of the Ministry of Defense. This exceeds the figures of the Soviet era. From September 1, 2023, the network of educational institutions of the Armed Forces will be replenished with the Donetsk Higher Military Combined Arms Command School.
The development of the network of pre-university educational organizations of the Ministry of Defense continues. By September 1 next year, we will open a new Suvorov military school in Irkutsk.
Together with the authorities, work has been organized to create a Federal agency for work with veterans. This will make it possible to centralize and make the social protection system for military veterans more effective. Thank you, dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, for supporting this initiative.
Housing conditions have been resolved for 49 thousand families of military personnel, and 100 thousand people receive compensation for subletting housing.
We pay great attention to the development of military medicine. Thanks to the ongoing medical and preventive measures, the overall morbidity rate in the Armed Forces has decreased by one and a half times over 10 years. The number of military medical organizations providing high-tech medical care has tripled, and the range of services they provide has doubled. The number of patients who received this type of care was more than 28 thousand people.
Military medics especially showed themselves during a special military operation. First aid is provided within 10 minutes. The wounded get to medical units within an hour, and to military hospitals – within the first day.
We achieved a low mortality rate at the stages of evacuation of the wounded. In the hospital unit, the mortality rate was less than half a percent – the lowest figure in the entire history of military medicine.
In accordance with your instructions, the implementation of the military healthcare modernization program for the period up to 2027 has begun. A new modern military hospital with 150 beds has been opened in Kazan. Nine new military hospitals are being built in Ryazan, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Bryansk, Kursk, Belgorod, Kaspiysk, Sevastopol, Mirny and Vladikavkaz. Construction of a health and wellness center has been completed at a unique balneological resort in Kamchatka.
The Ministry of Defense has organized a systematic fight against the new coronavirus infection. During the sixth wave, an outbreak of the disease was not allowed.
As for the military construction complex, all plans have been fulfilled, more than three thousand buildings and structures have been built. The main focus is on the development of infrastructure for strategic nuclear forces. This year, 650 high-tech facilities were built for them, including for the placement of the Avangard, Yars and Sarmat missile systems.
Northern Fleet commissioned onshore energy and social infrastructure facilities in Gadzhievo. At the base of the Caspian Flotilla, a mooring front with a length of 1,154 meters was put into operation, and the construction of another berth was completed. As part of the development of the air base system of the Armed Forces, infrastructure facilities were reconstructed at 15 airfields to receive all modern models of aviation equipment. According to the plan, the construction of military camps was carried out. Construction of 625 buildings and structures of the park and barrack-housing zones has been completed.
In accordance with your instructions, units of the railway troops continue the reconstruction of the BAM on the Ulak – Fevralsk section with a length of 339 kilometers. About three million cubic meters of earthworks have already been completed, which is more than half of the planned figures.
The Ministry of Defense has implemented major patriotic and cultural projects. Military parades were held in 28 cities. Traditionally, the Main Naval Parade was held. In accordance with your instructions, the Saur-Grave memorial complex, a landmark for the whole country, has been restored in 90 days. The Eternal Flame is once again burning on the mound.
Systematic work on military-patriotic education of young people was continued. Its core is the Unarmia movement, which has already covered all regions of Russia and brought together more than 1,251 thousand children and teenagers.
In cooperation with the authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, work continued on the development of the Avangard network of educational and methodological centers for military-patriotic education of young people. In 2022, 20 regional centers and 25 city centers will be opened in cities with a population of more than 100 thousand people. In total, more than 150 thousand high school students were trained in 88 Avangard centers. We believe that the creation of such centers should become the basis for initial military training and the system of military-patriotic education of young people in the country.
Comrade Supreme Commander!
In general, all the tasks set in 2022 have been completed by the Armed Forces. Their combat capabilities have increased by more than 13 percent, and the specified level of maintaining the country’s defense capability has been ensured.
Measures to strengthen the security of the Russian Federation.
Given the desire of NATO to increase its military potential near the Russian borders, as well as expand the North Atlantic Alliance at the expense of Finland and Sweden, it is necessary to take retaliatory measures to create an appropriate group of troops in the north-west of Russia.
When recruiting the Armed Forces, the age of conscription of citizens should be gradually increased from 18 to 21 years, and the maximum age should be raised to 30 years. Provide an opportunity for citizens to enter military service under a contract at their request from the first day of joining the service.
Create two interspecific strategic territorial associations of the Armed Forces-the Moscow and Leningrad military Districts.
Continue to improve the composition and structure of the Armed Forces, increase the responsibility of the main commands for the training and use of formations and formations. Form three motorized rifle divisions, including combined arms units, in the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, as well as an army corps in Karelia.
Reorganize seven motorized rifle brigades in the Western, Central, and Eastern [military] districts and in the Northern Fleet into motorized rifle divisions. In the Airborne Forces, it is necessary to additionally form two amphibious assault divisions.
For each combined-arms (tank) army, maintain a mixed aviation division and an army aviation brigade of 80-100 combat helicopters. In addition, it is planned to additionally form three aviation divisions, eight bomber aviation regiments, one fighter aviation regiment, and six army aviation brigades.
To create an artillery reserve in strategic areas, form five artillery divisions of military districts, as well as high-capacity artillery brigades.
In the coastal forces of the Navy, five marine divisions should be formed on the basis of existing Marine brigades.
In order to guarantee the fulfillment of tasks related to ensuring military security of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to increase the number of Armed Forces to one and a half million military personnel, including contract servicemen – up to 695 thousand people.
The transition to outsourcing in 2008-2012 led to the practical destruction of military repair bodies, which negatively affected the serviceability of weapons and equipment. Since 2012, measures have been taken to restore them. A special military operation showed the need for further building up of repair and restoration bodies in the troops. Next year, three repair plants will be formed and repair units in the military level will be strengthened.
In military commissariats, introduce federal state civil service with an increase in the number of military posts in them. Complete the digital transformation of military registration and enlistment offices.
Comrade Supreme Commander!
With your consent, the outlined approaches will be included in the development plans of the Armed Forces in accordance with the established procedure.
Priority tasks for 2023.
Continue conducting a special military operation until the tasks are fully completed. Russian groups of troops and forces should ensure the preservation of peace and stability in Nagorno-Karabakh and Syria.
Fully implement a set of operational and combat training measures with a focus on the threats associated with the further expansion of NATO to the east.
Prepare and conduct military maneuvers “West-2023”.
Put on combat duty in the Strategic Missile Forces 22 launchers with intercontinental ballistic missiles “Yars”, “Avangard”and ” Sarmat”.
To accept three Tu-160 strategic missile carriers into the air strategic nuclear forces. To accept the Emperor Alexander III nuclear-powered submarine of the Borey-A project, as well as four submarines and 12 surface ships, into the fleet.
Increase the supply of high-precision hypersonic missile systems “Dagger”and ” Zircon”. Continue working on other promising samples.
Increase the number of military personnel under the contract, taking into account the replacement of mobilized citizens in the groups of troops and the recruitment of new formations by the end of the year to 521,000 people.
Comrade Supreme Commander!
In accordance with your instructions, the course of progressive development of the Armed Forces and improvement of their combat capabilities will continue next year.
We will discuss the results of our activities in detail during the closed part of the board meeting.
Thanks.
I finished my report.
Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 21 2022 20:11 utc | 31
Long, comprehensive report that will need to be reread. Now, here’re Putin’s closing remarks that are of a different nature from his opening speech. Here the audience is more RoW. I’ll be transferring these three segments to my VK so people can find them easily when wanting to refer to them later. Again, the urge to add emphasis is great but…. There’s a video of it all at the link provided @30. It’s 1hr 3min and all in Russian. There’s also a series of 15 photos, one of which reveals some of the women in the audience. Now again, President Putin:
Vladimir Putin: Dear comrades,
By tradition, I will conclude with a few words, which will be general words, but nevertheless, in my opinion, are always of interest to us – in any case, what I will say, I think, is always of interest to the current situation in particular.
I have already said it more than once and even wrote it in my articles: our strategic adversaries have the goal of disintegrating and weakening, of dividing our country for centuries, and there is nothing new here. The country is too big, as it seems to them, and poses a threat to someone, so it needs to be “cleaned up” a little, fragmented. Always, remember, centuries, wherever you look, this goal has always been set, I will not give these examples now, just look at the relevant literature. An idea was always hatched and plans were hatched, plans were made, hopes that one way or another they would be able to do it.
For our part, we have always, almost always, taken a completely different approach, different attitudes: we have always wanted to be part of this so-called civilized world. And after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which we allowed with our own hands, for some reason it seemed to us that from day to day we would become part of this so-called civilized world. And as it turned out, we were not expected there, despite all our efforts and attempts – I say this, referring to my work, I also made these attempts. Our attempts to get closer, to become a part of it.
On the contrary, other actions were taken, including using international terrorists in the Caucasus, in order to finish off both Russia and the newly created Russian Federation. Many of those present in this Hall do not need to prove anything, as you already know what happened in the mid-1990s and early 2000s. And it seems that they anathematized all sorts of “Al-Qaeda” and other criminals, but their use on the territory of Russia was considered acceptable, they were given all sorts of support: material, informational, political – anything, including military, as long as they fought against Russia. Thanks to the peoples of the Caucasus, thanks to the Chechen people, thanks to the heroism of our servicemen, we have passed this difficult period of our history. We have passed through these trials and strengthened ourselves.
Further, as they say in such cases, – more. Our geopolitical rivals have started using everything – I don’t want to offend anyone, but I will say it anyway-that is bad for their own purposes: they have started to engage in brainwashing in the post-Soviet countries, and above all in Ukraine. Moreover, they did it quite successfully and were well prepared for it, since even in Soviet times, entire institutes worked in this direction.
After the coup d’etat in Ukraine in 2014… And we have been trying for decades, and I want to emphasize this, and we have been trying for decades to build relations in new geopolitical conditions. Everything was done to build not just good-neighborly, but fraternal relations in the new conditions: loans were given, and almost free energy resources were supplied-for years. No, nothing worked, just nothing.
Let me remind you that during the period of disintegration of the Soviet Union, when Ukraine was leaving the Union, in its Declaration of Independence – I think that the then leaders of Russia also had this in mind, I am sure that this was exactly the case – it wrote down that Ukraine is a neutral state. Therefore, in general, we can understand the leadership of that time, and in the conditions of that time, we probably did not see any threats: a neutral state, a fraternal people, a common culture, common spiritual and moral values, a common history. We didn’t see any threats. But no, the enemy worked very hard and, we must pay tribute, effectively.
None of our actions to build these relationships, which we probably hoped for, were effective and did not achieve the desired goal. I want to emphasize this: but there is nothing to reproach us with, I say this quite responsibly.
We have always – you know my position-considered the Ukrainian people to be a brotherly people, and I still think so. What is happening is, of course, a tragedy, our common tragedy. But it is not the result of our policy, but, on the contrary, it is the result of the policies of other countries, third countries that have always been striving for this, for the disintegration of the Russian world.
To a certain extent, they succeeded and pushed us to the point where we found ourselves.
So, after the coup d’etat of 2014, I will not talk about the reasons for this coup now, I will only say that it is unacceptable. Let me remind you that in February 2014, three foreign ministers of European countries – Poland, France and Germany – came to Kiev and signed as guarantors of the agreement between the opposition and the current government. A few days later – a coup d’etat. Everyone has forgotten about these guarantees, as if they never existed. What should have been done? Just say: dear friends, we are the guarantors, we are the largest European countries, we ask you to return to the negotiating table, go to the elections and use political procedures to resolve the issue of power. All.
And everyone knew perfectly well that for better or worse, the current government would certainly have lost any election, especially since the then president agreed to almost all the demands of the opposition, including early elections. And when I ask our so-called colleagues: well, why did you bring the matter to the coup d’etat? You know, there is no answer, they just throw up their hands: well, it turned out that way. Wow, it just happened! That is, we were given to understand that no pro-Russian forces – but any political figures, journalists, public figures who somehow raised their voice in favor of developing relations with Russia, they were simply killed on the street, and no one investigated anything. It became clear that we would not be given any chance, just no chance, to restore relations with this part of our former common country. Simply impossible. In fact, the practice of terror was used shamelessly and brazenly.
The brainwashing of Ukrainian citizens and the use of neo-Nazi, extreme nationalist ideology have done their job one way or another for decades.
Well, what is it?.. Hitler’s accomplices have elevated them to the rank of national heroes, and no one seems to notice this. Yes, they are nationalists, there are nationalists in every country, and we have them. But we are fighting the manifestations of neo-Nazism and fascism, and we do not make it a national policy. And in Ukraine, they are being built, and everyone pretends not to notice it. Nationalism seems to be a good thing, they are fighting for national interests, but the fact that this is done on the basis of fascist, neo – Nazi ideology is simply not noticed by anyone. They carry swastikas in the center of major cities, including the capital, and it seems that, thank God, this is the way it should be. Why? Because it’s just like in the 1990s-in the early 2000s, international terrorists were used to fight Russia, they didn’t care, sorry for the bad manners, that they were terrorists, recognized international terrorists, but they didn’t care, because they were used in the fight against Russia. So it is here: neo-Nazis are used in the fight against Russia – and it doesn’t matter that they are neo-Nazis, as long as they fight Russia. But we do care.
It became obvious even then that a clash with these forces, including in Ukraine, was inevitable, the only question was when it would happen. And of course, fighting, military operations-this is always associated with tragedy and loss of people, we are well aware of this, we are aware of it. But since it’s unavoidable, it’s better today than tomorrow. I think that all those present in this Hall perfectly understand what I am talking about, meaning both the state of our Armed Forces and the availability of promising types of weapons and equipment that other countries do not have, but we do. All this creates a certain margin of safety, and it is there.
We know our advantages: the nuclear triad, the Military-space Forces, the Navy in separate segments, and so on. We know all this, we have it, and all this is in the right state. We also see what we need to do to improve the Armed Forces, including Ground Forces, counter-battery warfare, communications systems, and so on. Everyone in this Room understands what I’m talking about, and I’m sure you agree.
But what do I want to emphasize? We, namely Russia, and there are not many such countries in the world, not to mention our neighbors, they will soon have nothing at all, everything will be only in the form of handouts and money, weapons, ammunition, only handouts, in Russia everything is completely different: we have everything, I think I would like to emphasize that we have everything, all the opportunities, to build up this potential, and we will certainly do it without any discounts. And unlike many other countries, as I have already said, we will develop it on our own – our own, I want to emphasize this-scientific, technological, industrial and human resources base. And we will solve these tasks without compromising the development of the economy and the social sphere, without failing to fulfill any obligations to our people, to our citizens in the social sphere. All our plans are here, all our long-term tasks will be solved, and all our plans will be implemented.
We will not repeat the mistakes of the past, when in the interests of increasing our defense capability, we destroyed our economy where it was necessary, and where it was not really necessary. We will not engage in the militarization of the country and the militarization of the economy, primarily because the current level of development, the structure of the economy and so on do not require it, we simply do not need it. And I want to emphasize once again that we do not intend to do anything unnecessary to the detriment of the country, to the detriment of our people, the economy, and the social sphere.
We will improve the Armed Forces and the entire military component of the state. We will do it calmly, rhythmically, without any fuss, consistently. We will solve problems in the field of strengthening the defense capability in general and solving problems that are faced during a special military operation.
I agree with your suggestions for further structural changes in the Armed Forces, but after the discussion at the board, I ask you to report back, and we will also discuss this in detail.
I want to thank all of you for everything that has been done, and I express my confidence and want to convey to you that you yourself feel this, the mood in the country: the whole country looks at the Armed Forces, wishes you success and good luck. And we have no doubts about achieving all the results that we have formulated, put forward, formulated by you, and reported to me. I have no doubt that all the goals we set for ourselves will definitely be achieved.
Thank you.
All the best!
Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 21 2022 20:23 utc | 35
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