Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu held a meeting of the department's board on Tuesday. Our special military operation in Ukraine was not directly on the agenda. However, the minister, of course, could not bypass this topic.
First of all, Shoigu stressed that the Russian Federation remains a reliable guarantor of the security of its citizens. "The events of recent months clearly demonstrate how important it is for Russia to continue improving the Armed Forces. The Russian army fulfills the tasks set by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief during a special military operation," the minister said.
He said that the plan for the liberation of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics is being consistently implemented, everything necessary is being done to establish peaceful life. And the Russian servicemen participating in the operation show courage and heroism in the performance of their military duty.
At the same time, the United States and the Western countries under its control are doing everything to delay the special military operation as much as possible. The growing volume of supplies of foreign weapons to Ukraine, according to Shoigu, clearly demonstrate their intentions to provoke the Kiev regime to fight "to the last Ukrainian."
The Minister said that the actions of the Russian troops and the quality of the weapons used during the special operation once again show the correctness of the priorities of the construction of the Russian Armed Forces determined by the military-political leadership of the country. And the consistent implementation of the activity plan of the Ministry of Defense is aimed at the further development of the army and navy and providing them with advanced military equipment. "In addition, the introduction of new methods of warfare will make it possible to better adapt troops to modern conditions of armed confrontation," Shoigu is sure.
At the board, the generals discussed the state of affairs in the Southern Military District, the Northern Fleet and the Main Communications Directorate. The Minister recalled that this year more than 3 thousand units of modern weapons and military equipment will be delivered to the Southern Military District. About 170 military infrastructure facilities will be completed and put into operation there. Separately, Shoigu spoke about the implementation of social guarantees for servicemen and their family members in the district. For this purpose, in particular, service and permanent housing is being put into operation. Since the beginning of the year, 758 people have already settled in the "offices". And another 849 military were provided with a permanent roof over their heads, including under the military mortgage program.
As for the Northern Fleet, the Ministry of Defense is primarily concerned with ensuring military security of the Arctic zone of Russia. The Minister recalled that the North Sea residents are solving their tasks in the face of a sharp aggravation of the military-political situation in Europe, increased tension and growing threats. Therefore, this year, the military capabilities of the groups of forces are being increased, their combat potential is being strengthened, and rearmament is being carried out. In 2022, more than 500 modern weapons will be delivered to the Northern Fleet.
The implementation of these plans, according to Shoigu, will gradually increase the combat strength of the 14th Army Corps by almost one and a half times. The combat potential of the coastal troops of the Russian Federation will increase. A continuous radar field will be created, and the capabilities of air defense systems to control airspace in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation will be increased. The presence of ships of the Northern Fleet in various regions of the World Ocean will expand, and the security of Russia's maritime economic activity will also be ensured. "During the training on the management of the Armed Forces conducted in February under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the Northern Fleet confirmed its ability to reliably solve the tasks of using naval nuclear forces," the Defense Minister said.
He also said that the systematic re-equipment and improvement of the capabilities of the communications troops are continuing. To increase the capabilities of the Armed Forces control system, the formation of the 24th separate communications Brigade of the Supreme High Command was completed last year. "Over the past five years, more than 20 new communication facilities and complexes have been created, over 110 thousand units of modern communication equipment have been delivered, as a result, their share has increased to 72 percent," Shoigu recalled.
According to him, in order to maintain the orbital communications constellation, the second upgraded Meridian-M communications satellite was launched into orbit in March. Its work will ensure stable communication in the Arctic region over an area of more than 3 million square kilometers. Another such device will be sent into space before the end of this year.
"The communications troops successfully perform tasks during operations outside Russia, new ways of organizing communications have been tested to ensure stable command of troops in difficult geographical and interference conditions," the minister said.
He stressed that the development of the communication system of the Armed Forces follows the path of using advanced telecommunications technologies, including the introduction of artificial intelligence elements. Their use has already made it possible to reduce the time of bringing target designation to such complexes of high-precision long-range weapons as "Caliber" and "Dagger" tenfold. Work in this direction will continue.
Yuri Gavrilov
