The Ministry of Defense will strengthen the land component of the defense of the Kaliningrad Region. In particular, the reformation of the 79th separate motorized rifle brigade began. This is the most powerful combined-arms unit in the region at the moment. On its basis, a regiment is being formed, which will be stationed in Sovetsk. This unit, along with a number of others, will become part of the motorized rifle division, which will be entrusted with the defense of the exclave. According to experts, the updated group will be able to effectively cover the Kaliningrad region from different directions.
The Ministry of Defense will strengthen the land component of the defense of the Kaliningrad Region. In particular, the reformation of the 79th separate motorized rifle brigade began. This is the most powerful combined-arms unit in the region at the moment. On its basis, a regiment is being formed, which will be stationed in Sovetsk. This unit, along with a number of others, will become part of the motorized rifle division, which will be entrusted with the defense of the exclave. According to experts, the updated group will be able to effectively cover the Kaliningrad region from different directions.
Legacy of Victory
A motorized rifle division on the territory of the Kaliningrad region will be formed this year, sources in the military department said. Its units will take part in the strategic exercises "West-2021", which will be held in September.
According to sources of "Izvestia", the basis of the division will be a regiment created on the basis of the 79th motorized rifle brigade. He will receive some of the old "brigade" battalions and some support units. It is possible that the second regiment, which will be part of the division, will be the 7th separate Guards motorized rifle, located in Kaliningrad.
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The 79th separate Guards Motor Rifle Insterburg Brigade is the successor of the 18th Guards Rifle Division — one of the most famous formations of the Great Patriotic War. It was originally formed in 1939 under the number 133. She participated in combat operations from July 1941, held the defense on the Dnieper, in the Smolensk and Kalinin (now Tver) regions. For the heroism of the personnel, the unit was one of the first in March 1942 to receive the status of the Guards and the serial number 18. At the final stage of the war, the division stormed Konigsberg and Pillau, and fought on the Baltic Spit. At the end of 1945, it was transformed into the 30th Guards Mechanized Division, in 1957-into the 30th Guards motorized Rifle, in 1964 — into the 18th Guards Motorized Rifle. In 2001, it became the 79th separate Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade.
-Until the early 1990s, the 11th army was in the region, but then it was reduced,-military historian Dmitry Boltenkov told Izvestia. — In recent years, the Kaliningrad Region has been covered by the 11th Army Corps, which includes a motorized rifle brigade and a regiment, as well as an artillery brigade and a tank regiment. Apparently, now we have decided to reformat the grouping. Poland is adjacent to our exclave in the south, and Lithuania in the north — in these states, multinational NATO battalions serve on rotation. Apparently, in the end, they will make it so that part of the Russian troops will be focused on Poland, and the other — on Lithuania. If necessary, they will be able to respond quickly to changes in the situation.
The decision to form a division on the territory of the exclave is long overdue, according to military expert Vladislav Shurygin.
— After the experiments of the beginning of the last decade, when the army was trying to completely transfer to the brigade system, it became obvious that without large formations, it would be quite difficult to fight with a brigade scattering, - he told Izvestia. — Especially in the West, where the enemy has the upper hand and uses powerful weapons systems. The division is a powerful fist. On the one hand, it has everything you need for local conflicts. On the other hand, in case of large-scale military operations, the division has all the necessary means to protect Kaliningrad.
Strengthening axlav
The upcoming formation of a full-fledged motorized rifle division in the Kaliningrad region was announced in December last year by the commander of the Baltic Fleet, Alexander Nosatov. It will include motorized rifle, tank and artillery regiments. According to the admiral, the new unit will be part of the protecting exclave of the 11th Army Corps.
The reason for the strengthening of the ground group, the Russian military calls the tightening of the multinational strike groups of NATO to the borders of the region. Among them, one armored and several battalion-tactical. The modernization and strengthening of the Russian group in the exclave has been going on for several years. In early 2018, Iskander-M tactical missile systems were deployed to the region. According to the Ministry of Defense, they have re-equipped the 152nd Missile Brigade of the 11th Army Corps of the Baltic Fleet.
At the beginning of 2019, there were reports about the re-formation of the tank battalion located in the Kaliningrad region into the 11th separate regiment. The following year, representatives of the defense ministry reported on the receipt of three dozen modernized T-72B3M tanks with significantly improved protection against cumulative ammunition and a new fire control system.
The artillery brigade of the 11th Army Corps last year, instead of multiple rocket launchers "Grad" received long-range MLRS "Smerch" caliber 300 millimeters. This made it possible to increase both the target range and the power of the salvo of the compound.
Recently, Russia has been actively strengthening the defense of the exclave. As previously reported by Izvestia, this year a division of unique supersonic complexes "Bastion"will be deployed there. They are capable of hitting targets at a distance of up to 600 km. The coastal missile force is represented by the 27th separate brigade. The connection is based in the village of Donskoye, Svetlogorsk city district, 30 km from the regional center. This locality is located on the westernmost tip of the Zemland Peninsula, approximately at the same distance from the northern and southern borders of the region. This location allows you to keep under control almost the entire water area of the Baltic Sea, adjacent to the Russian territory.
In addition, in recent years, the region has received several divisions of S-400 "Triumph" anti-aircraft missile systems. The fleet aviation received multi-purpose Su-30SM fighters and upgraded Ka-27M helicopters. Tank units of the Army Corps are replacing the outdated T-72B with their latest modification, the T-72B3M, which is better protected and has more firepower.
