17.09.2020 (12:31)
Moscow hosts Defence Ministry Board Session
Today, under the leadership of the head of the Military Department General of the Army Sergei Shoygu, a session of the Board of the Russian Defence Ministry took place in Moscow.
The Russian Defence Minister began the meeting with an implementation of the activities for 2019-2025 in the Air Defense and Northern Fleet in terms of implementing the May decrees of the President of Russia, his instructions following the meetings in Sochi and his Message to the Federal Assembly.
Sergei Shoigu noted that the military-political situation in the Western strategic direction remains tense. In the Eastern Military District, a set of measures is envisaged to neutralize emerging threats. The force grouping are gradually being built up in especially important areas.
“By the end of the year, the district will receive over five hundred units of new and modernized equipment,” Sergei Shoigu said. - This will make it possible to re-equip 14 formations, in particular, two anti-aircraft missile regiments - for S-400 complexes and two anti-aircraft missile battalions - for Buk-M1-2 complexes.
The head of the military department noted the positive dynamics in the recruitment of formations and military units with servicemen under the contract: “Since the beginning of the year, about eleven thousand people have been selected. The recruitment plan is 100% complete."
He said that the final exam for the military command and control bodies and the district troops in the summer training period was participation in a two way command post exercise with groups of forces at the Tsugol training ground. More than 19,000 servicemen and 2,000 pieces of military equipment were involved in the event. As part of the preparation for it, a set of special exercises were conducted on all types of comprehensive support.
In addition, the minister noted that the military personnel of the district are actively involved in disaster relief. Thus, in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory, 57 forest fires were localized on an area of 46 thousand hectares. In total, 442 people and 68 pieces of equipment were involved in extinguishing. To monitor the areas of natural fires, over 30 sorties of the army and 50 sorties of unmanned aircraft were carried out.
Then they touched upon issues related to the flood situation in the Jewish Autonomous Region, where a consolidated detachment of the Eastern Military District in the amount of 700 people and 50 pieces of equipment has been operating since September 12. The personnel are carrying out work to strengthen the dam on the Amur River. About 450 tons of sand and gravel mixture were delivered, protective structures in the Leninskoye settlement with a total length of more than 3 kilometers were strengthened.
Then the head of the military department drew the attention of the Board Session members to the military-political situation in the Arctic, where the tendency to complication persists. “First of all,” Sergei Shoigu said, “this is due to the growing competition between the world's leading states for access to resources and transport communications. We are actively developing the Northern Fleet to strengthen the state's defence capability and ensure Russia's national interests in the Arctic. More than 20 significant organizational and staff activities are planned this year, including the formation of crews entering the combat composition of the fleet of surface ships and submarines."
Also, the head of the military department noted that the Training Plan for 2020 is being implemented ahead of schedule. 3,797 test events were held, half of them with the use of weapons. The preparation of a diverse grouping of the Navy has been completed. Practical shooting from all types of weapons has been practiced in cooperation with long-range aviation. Eight military voyages of ships were carried out with calls to 12 foreign ports. In the Norilsk region, an joint tactical exercise was held with the implementation of tasks to strengthen the protection, defence of important facilities and the destruction of illegal armed formations.
Then Sergei Shoigu spoke about improving the infrastructure of the Arctic zone. “The construction of Nagurskaya and Temp airfields, block-modular camps for the newly formed units of the 3rd Air Defence Division and weapons storage facilities continues,” the minister said. - Reconstruction of the mooring front for the latest missile submarine cruisers of the Borey-A project is underway.
“The Northern Fleet is equipped with modern military equipment adapted for use in the harsh Arctic conditions. This year he will receive 179 weapons. The fleet has already been supplemented by the Knyaz Vladimir nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine and the Admiral Kasatonov frigate, the Akademik Pashin sea tanker and the Nikolay Skosyrev hydrographic vessel, the minister added.
According to him, the Northern Fleet is successfully solving tasks in the Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. In the Arctic, he not only ensures the safety of the Northern Sea Route regions but also participates in the study of the region.
Currently, together with the Russian Geographical Society, the fleet is conducting the third Integrated Arctic Expedition for scientific and practical research of the Arctic Ocean.
In conclusion, Sergei Shoigu proposed to consider the implementation in the Armed Forces of the Action Plan for the implementation of the Fundamentals of State Policy in the field of mobilization preparation and mobilization for the period up to 2030, approved by the President of the Russian Federation in January last year.
“The Fundamentals define the key tasks of mobilization training, which the Armed Forces are solving in close cooperation with government bodies,” the head of the military department said. - To increase the effectiveness of joint activities, starting from 2019, comprehensive mobilization exercises have been conducted under the leadership of the commanders of the military districts and the Northern Fleet, where the whole range of measures for the transfer of troops, government bodies and the regional economy to work in wartime is being worked out. The recruiting commissions and territorial defence headquarters are headed by governors, which improves the quality of mobilization activities. By the decision of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, during the annual strategic exercises, the readiness of government bodies and industrial enterprises to fulfill tasks to ensure the mobilization deployment of the Armed Forces in wartime is checked.
“To further increase the mobilization readiness of the army and navy, we are implementing an appropriate Plan, linked in terms of goals, tasks and timing with the activities of other state bodies,” the minister concluded his opening remarks to the members of the Board Session of the Ministry of Defence.
