The four fleets of Russia and the Caspian Flotilla can be removed from subordination to military districts and reassigned to the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. Thus, according to experts, the fleet management structure, which disappeared during the time of Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, can be restored in Russia. What are the features of the previous and current reforms and what should be the fleet management system ideally? According to sources, the Northern, Baltic, Black Sea and Pacific fleets, as well as the Caspian Flotilla, can be withdrawn from subordination to military districts and will return to direct subordination to the main command of the Navy.
As the interlocutor of TASS explained, "these associations will initially be subordinate operationally in peacetime to the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy," in the future they will be returned "to direct subordination, as it was before."
At the same time, the Northern Fleet "will retain its status as a military district." It is also planned to form a management group from the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy in Moscow, where all channels of fleet management will be concentrated, since the previous system has demonstrated "inefficiency".
Recall that the Navy was under the control of the land generals after the creation of a new management structure of the armed forces. It was introduced by Sergei Shoigu's predecessor Anatoly Serdyukov, who for several years carried out a large-scale reform of the Russian army. It fell at the end of the 2000s.
Experts agree that the reassignment of the four fleets and the Caspian Flotilla is long overdue. "This may be the result of a sudden check of the combat readiness of the Pacific Fleet," said Sergei Ishchenko, captain of the first rank of the reserve. – If the decision is made, the changes will make it possible to solve all the tasks more efficiently. In addition, moving away from subordination to land forces will allow us to deal more seriously with solving problems in the ocean."
However, a combination of the fleet and military districts will be needed to solve specific tasks within the framework of anti-amphibious or anti-submarine defense. "But the overall management of the naval forces should be carried out centrally by competent people related to the fleet," Ishchenko added.
Captain of the first rank Vasily Dandykin called the withdrawal of the Northern Fleet into an independent operational-strategic association from January 1, 2021 the first news about the upcoming changes in the management structure of the Navy. "This decision has fully justified itself. In addition, it included army units, including two Arctic brigades," he said.
Dandykin called it logical to return the management structure of the Navy to its former model. "The commanders of military districts have no understanding of the specifics of the fleet. It is difficult to understand it without practice, even taking into account training at the General Staff, – the interlocutor is sure. – The decision on reassignment will reduce the chain of approvals and more effectively perform the tasks facing the Navy. Let me remind you that back in the days of the Russian Empire, the navy was subordinate to a separate maritime minister."
Now the Pacific Fleet is part of the Eastern Military District, and the Northern One is part of the joint strategic command "Northern Fleet". The Baltic Fleet is part of the Western Military District, and the Black Sea Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla are part of the Southern Military District.
The chairman of the club of submariners of St. Petersburg, captain of the first rank Igor Kurdin considers the decision of the times of Serdyukov on the subordination of fleets to the commanders of districts "initially erroneous", because "then there was confusion and it was not very clear who controls what and from whom to request permission."
"I will illustrate everything with one simple example. Let's say a certain cruiser is part of the Leningrad Naval Base, which is subordinate to the commander of the Western Military District. That is, the Baltic Fleet turns out to be out of business, which looks completely ridiculous. And the same applies to operational control schemes in other fleets," Kurdin explained.
"Therefore, now, on the basis of the conclusions made during the special operation, it was decided to subordinate the fleets to the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. Now I am waiting for a simpler, clearer, coordinated, reliable and operational fleet command. But even here it is impossible to go to extremes – important decisions should still be made in coordination with the commander-in-chief of the Ground Forces or with the general Army command. This reassignment does not mean that the fleet will be on its own, and the army will be on its own," the source stressed.
One military expert, captain of the first rank of the reserve Vladimir Gundarov noted that he does not yet see the need to reassign the naval command of all fleets. "On the one hand, all fleets and flotillas are in principle subordinate to the Commander-in-chief of the Navy. But at the same time, they must act in the interests of their district," Gundarov said.
"If, for example, the grouping of the Western Military District needs to protect the Kaliningrad Region and the Gulf of Finland from the encroachments of our former friends and brothers, then in accordance with this, the fleet receives the task of supporting the ground forces. The fleet does not perform independent tasks, except for the times of Admiral Kuznetsov and Admiral Gorshkov," Gundarov wrote.
The expert recalled the words of President Vladimir Putin during a recent conversation with the head of the Defense Ministry Sergei Shoigu about the inspection of the Pacific Fleet, whose ships can operate not only in the Sea of Okhotsk, but also in any other directions. This phrase of the head of state, the interlocutor believes, may mean that the Pacific Fleet will also become an independent operational strategic unit, like the Northern Fleet. Gundarov also suggested:
If two fleets receive the status of a military district, then the status of the entire Navy, the Commander-in-Chief and the commander of the Navy automatically "increases."
As for the Caspian Flotilla, the Black Sea and Baltic fleets, "all support goes through the Navy Commander-in-Chief." "These fleets are only operationally subordinate to the commanders of military districts. This is a normal phenomenon for the Baltic Fleet, because it cannot solve its tasks in the region separately without a land grouping," Gundarov explained.
The Northern and Pacific fleets, which are part of the nuclear triad, are more subordinate not to the Commander-in-chief of the Navy, but to the General Staff, which is responsible for nuclear planning. "The Commander-in-chief provides the material part of the fleet's activities, and the General Staff sets combat tasks for it, for example, draws up a schedule for the entry into combat service of nuclear submarines with strategic weapons. In this regard, objective conditions do not allow us to completely reassign everything to the commander–in-chief of the Navy," the expert believes.
Andrey Rezchikov, Daria Volkova
