Strategic Reforms in Russia’s Armed Forces: Structural Reorganization and Modernization

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Along with growing the armed forces, the Defense Ministry intends to create Moscow and Leningrad military districts, reorganize three motorized rifle divisions, establish one army unit in Karelia, form two air assault divisions, and organize seven motorized rifle brigades. Five naval divisions would be built on the basis of existing divisions and naval brigades.

In addition, every combined arms (tank) army would receive a mixed aviation division and an army aviation brigade comprising 80 to 100 combat helicopters. Plans also call for the creation of three aviation division directorates, eight bomber regiments, one fighter aviation regiment, and six army aviation brigades.

Five artillery divisions and high-capacity artillery brigades would be formed within the Rocket Forces and Artillery, though the exact number of brigades is not specified. The plans are ambitious, yet the core aim is not to mimic past organizational schemes but to elevate intelligence, management, and communications to a new level. Significant changes are needed in service structures and combat weapons across the Armed Forces. The objective is not to prepare for the last war, but to anticipate actions for the next 40 to 50 years.

For example, the idea of issuing a mixed aviation division and an army aviation brigade with 80 to 100 combat helicopters to each combined arms army has sparked surprise. Similar structures existed before the Great Patriotic War in the early period, with aviation divisions subordinate to combined arms armies. On the eve of June 22, 1941, the Western Special Military District included the 11th mixed aviation division and the 7th air brigade within one army, and the 9th mixed aviation division within another. The 9th division reportedly fielded 429 aircraft, a staggering number by any standard of the time or today.

Yet the war demonstrated that distributing aviation across various Ground Forces formations was an imperfect approach. The commander of the Red Army Air Force, Pavel Zhigarev, informed Stalin in March 1942 that aviation lacked unified command and coordination for effective operations. He argued that aviation should be desubordinated to the major commands and managed by a centralized structure reporting directly to the Headquarters, while ensuring air power remains united and indivisible. This led to consideration of reestablishing operational formations within the Aerospace Forces or at least testing an air army directly under the Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces, reflecting a conviction that aviation cannot be divided among many commands.

In the same vein, the artillery formations would be designed to meet modern demands by leveraging up-to-date reconnaissance and fire adjustment capabilities, real time data from space-based reconnaissance systems, and unmanned aerial vehicles attached to artillery units. The emphasis would be on equipping artillery units with weapons capable of longer range, greater accuracy, and higher firepower, supported by an automatic fire control system at the division command post to rapidly respond to any evolving battlefield situation.

The idea of creating two additional air assault divisions is met with skepticism. The era of paratroopers is widely seen as past, and the current airborne and air assault divisions are heavily reliant on older aluminum combat vehicles and 1960s era 122-millimeter howitzers, which are not seen as effective for modern mission needs.

Reorganization of existing naval brigades into five divisions is possible, but it requires compatible amphibious landing forces and landing craft. Without those assets, naval personnel would face serious limitations in expeditionary operations.

Attention is also directed to air defense, especially in the European portion of the country, where the strength of radio engineering and anti-aircraft missile formations should be enhanced to respond to evolving threats. The overall plan underscores the need to develop the strategic transport and communication infrastructure, create a robust aviation and fleet base network, modernize airfields and bases, and establish reliable command posts, arsenals, and supply warehouses for sustained operations.

In sum, there remains substantial work to define and implement equipment and organizational changes across potential theatres of operation. The broader objective is to outline a credible path to expanding the Armed Forces to approximately 1.5 million personnel while ensuring readiness, mobility, and resilience for future security challenges.

The views expressed reflect one analyst’s perspective and may differ from editorial positions.

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