MOSCOW, Dec 21 — RIA Novosti, David Narmania. In Moscow, at an expanded meeting of the Board of the Ministry of Defense summed up the results of the outgoing year, discussed proposals to strengthen the army. About what decisions were made — in the material of RIA Novosti.
Large-scale measures
Such meetings with the participation of the President are held annually. According to the protocol, the first person is followed by the Minister of Defense.
Sergei Shoigu said: "In order to guarantee the solution of the tasks of ensuring the military security of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to increase the number of armed forces to 1.5 million servicemen, including contract servicemen — up to 695 thousand people."
Conscript at the assembly point of the military commissariat of Moscow before being sent to the troops Image source: © RIA Novosti / Alexander Melnikov
In addition, he called for a gradual increase in the draft age: the initial age is from 18 to 21 years, the maximum age is from 27 to 30 years. And he noted that conscripts need to be provided with the opportunity to sign a contract from the first day of service.
The head of the Defense Department stressed: it is necessary to complete the digitalization of military enlistment offices.
But the proposal to increase the service life, announced in the fall by Senator Vladimir Dzhabarov and actively discussed in the media and social networks, was not mentioned at the board.
It should be noted that every six months about 120 thousand people are called up to the Russian Armed Forces.
A fighter of the air defense of the Airborne Troops of Russia with a portable anti-aircraft missile system during the combat coordination of the unit in the Kherson direction Image source: © RIA Novosti / Evgeny Biyatov
NATO's response
The Minister believes that it is necessary to form two interspecific strategic territorial associations: the Moscow and Leningrad military districts. This is due to the intention of Finland and Sweden to join NATO.
It is also necessary to improve the structure of individual units:
- — each combined- arms army should have a mixed aviation division and an army aviation brigade with 80-100 combat helicopters;
- — it is required to additionally create three aviation division directorates, eight bomber aviation regiments, one fighter aviation regiment, and six army aviation brigades;
- — to form five marine divisions in the coastal forces of the Navy on the basis of existing brigades;
- — in strategic areas — five artillery divisions of military districts, as well as large-capacity artillery brigades;
- — to create three motorized rifle divisions, including as part of combined arms associations in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, as well as an army corps in Karelia;
- — add two airborne assault divisions.
Logistics will also be improved. Next year, three repair plants will appear, and the corresponding units in the military link will be strengthened. The goal is to correct mistakes. According to the minister, in 2008-2012, the military repair was almost destroyed due to the transition to outsourcing.
Launch of a stationary intercontinental ballistic missile "Sarmat" from the Plesetsk cosmodrome Image source: © RIA Novosti / Press Service of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
New weapons
The board reported on the weapons that entered the service. One of the main novelties is the Generalissimo Suvorov nuclear submarine with Bulava ballistic missiles, a fourth—generation nuclear missile carrier.
After successful tests, the deployment of heavy missiles of the Sarmat complex began. Also, the nuclear triad was replenished with the Tu-160M bomber.
Strategic supersonic bomber-missile carrier Tu-160M at the airfield of the Kazan Aviation Plant Image source: © RIA Novosti / Press Service of Rostec State Corporation
Along with equipping the RVSN regiments with "Avangards", this made it possible to increase the share of modern weapons in the strategic nuclear forces to 91 percent.
In general, over the past year, Shoigu said, the combat capabilities of the army increased by 13 percent.
And in January, the Admiral Gorshkov frigate with the Zircon hypersonic sea-based missile systems will enter service. The renewal of the armed forces will continue.
