Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that Moscow will respond to Finland’s entry into NATO by strengthening its military potential in the west and northwest.
In this case, the question arises of how the Russian Armed Forces can repel a hypothetical invasion of the territory of Russia by NATO troops, how to defeat the advancing enemy units and formations, how to hold the most important border areas of its territory. and also how to create the conditions to seize the initiative and move on to the next counterattack. Of course, when such questions are exclusively in the field of guesses and assumptions.
In the event of a hypothetical outbreak of hostilities, the Russian army will be tasked with repelling missile and air strikes of NATO forces, deploying the enemy’s command and control, reconnaissance and electronic warfare systems, damaging the enemy’s aviation and nuclear missile groups. , repel enemy attacks from the sea and defeat their groupings.
Therefore, from today it is necessary to imagine what the future groups of the Russian Armed Forces in the northwest and west direction will look like, their operational-strategic formations, what the system of defense lines will be, the air defense and missile defense system. In this theater of operation, the operational engineering barriers system, control and communication system. Among other things, a coastal defense system should be provided in coastal areas.
And in this regard, much is already being done. For example, at the beginning of this year, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced the creation of a corps in terms of strengthening the grouping of troops on the Finnish border (in Karelia and the Leningrad Region). This AK will include the Air Force’s three motorized rifle divisions and two air assault divisions, as previously reported.
Considerable attention should be paid to improving the radar reconnaissance, anti-aircraft missile and fighter aircraft air protection system. In this regard, it is quite possible to analyze the feasibility of creating new anti-aircraft missile units and formations, radio engineering regiments and brigades, and to restore all aviation regiments deployed in this region during the Soviet era.
First of all, most likely, the ground and coastal troops of the RF Armed Forces will be built. The grouping of missile corps and artillery will also increase significantly (it is quite possible that this group will include the Iskander-M missile brigades and high-capacity artillery brigades equipped with nuclear weapons). When planning the combat use of the troops, the possibility of attacking targets on Finnish and Swedish territory with long-range precision weapons will likely be taken into account. First of all, this applies to Long-Range Aviation units and formations equipped with air-launched cruise missiles, as well as Navy formations with Kalibr missiles.
Given the significant superiority of the North Atlantic Alliance in conventional weapons, perhaps it should not abandon nuclear minefields along Russia’s border with new NATO members.
In any case, the defensive operation should be decided in advance, the necessary groupings of the Armed Forces should be formed, plans should be made for their deployment, interaction, command and control issues and all kinds of support should be provided. overcame. Of course, this will require certain budgetary expenditures. But in this case the national defense and security interests are definitely higher.