Armed forces of the USSR. Soviet army Strength of the USSR Armed Forces in 1986

In the absence of a land front in Europe, the German leadership decided to defeat the Soviet Union during a short-term campaign in the summer - autumn of 1941. To achieve this goal, the most combat-ready part of the German armed forces was deployed on the border with the USSR 1 .

Wehrmacht

For Operation Barbarossa, out of the 4 army group headquarters available in the Wehrmacht, 3 were deployed (North, Center and South) (75%), out of 13 field army headquarters - 8 (61.5%), out of 46 army corps headquarters - 34 (73.9%), of 12 motorized corps - 11 (91.7%). In total, 73.5% of the total number of divisions available in the Wehrmacht was allocated for the Eastern campaign. Most of the troops had combat experience gained in previous military campaigns. Thus, out of 155 divisions in military operations in Europe in 1939-1941. 127 (81.9%) participated, and the remaining 28 were partially staffed by personnel who also had combat experience. In any case, these were the most combat-ready units of the Wehrmacht (see table 1). The German Air Force deployed 60.8% of flying units, 16.9% of air defense troops and over 48% of signal troops and other units to support Operation Barbarossa.

German satellites

Together with Germany, its allies were preparing for war with the USSR: Finland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Italy, which allocated the following forces to wage the war (see table 2). In addition, Croatia contributed 56 aircraft and up to 1.6 thousand people. By June 22, 1941, there were no Slovak and Italian troops on the border, which arrived later. Consequently, the German Allied forces deployed there included 767,100 men, 37 crew divisions, 5,502 guns and mortars, 306 tanks and 886 aircraft.

In total, the forces of Germany and its allies on the Eastern Front numbered 4,329.5 thousand people, 166 crew divisions, 42,601 guns and mortars, 4,364 tanks, assault and self-propelled guns and 4,795 aircraft (of which 51 were at the disposal of the Air Force High Command and together with 8.5 thousand Air Force personnel are not taken into account in further calculations).

Red Army

The armed forces of the Soviet Union, in the context of the outbreak of war in Europe, continued to increase and by the summer of 1941 they were the largest army in the world (see table 3). 56.1% of the ground forces and 59.6% of the air force units were stationed in the five western border districts. In addition, from May 1941, the concentration of 70 divisions of the second strategic echelon from internal military districts and the Far East began in the Western Theater of Operations (TVD). By June 22 in western districts 16 divisions arrived (10 rifle, 4 tank and 2 motorized), which numbered 201,691 people, 2,746 guns and 1,763 tanks.

The grouping of Soviet troops in the Western theater of operations was quite powerful. The general balance of forces by the morning of June 22, 1941 is presented in Table 4, judging by the data of which the enemy surpassed the Red Army only in the number of personnel, because its troops were mobilized.

Mandatory clarifications

Although the above data gives a general idea of ​​the strength of the opposing factions, it should be borne in mind that the Wehrmacht completed its strategic concentration and deployment in the theater of operations, while in the Red Army this process was in full swing. How figuratively A.V. described this situation. Shubin, “a dense body was moving from West to East at high speed. From the East, a more massive, but looser block was slowly moving forward, the mass of which was increasing, but not at a fast enough pace” 2. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the balance of forces at two more levels. Firstly, this is the balance of forces of the parties in various strategic directions on a district (front) - army group scale, and secondly, on individual operational directions in the border zone on an army - army scale. Moreover, in the first case, only ground forces and air forces are taken into account, and for the Soviet side also border troops, artillery and aviation of the Navy, but without information on the personnel of the fleet and internal troops of the NKVD. In the second case, only ground forces are taken into account for both sides.

Northwest

In the North-Western direction, the troops of the German Army Group North and the Baltic Special Military District (PribOVO) opposed each other. The Wehrmacht had a fairly significant superiority in manpower and some in artillery, but was inferior in tanks and aircraft. However, it should be taken into account that only 8 Soviet divisions were located directly in the 50 km border strip, and another 10 were located 50-100 km from the border. As a result, in the direction of the main attack, Army Group North troops managed to achieve a more favorable balance of forces (see Table 5).

Western direction

In the Western direction, the troops of the German Army Group Center and the Western Special Military District (ZapOVO) with part of the forces of the 11th Army of the PribOVO opposed each other. For the German command, this direction was the main one in Operation Barbarossa, and therefore Army Group Center was the strongest on the entire front. 40% of all German divisions deployed from the Barents to the Black Sea were concentrated here (including 50% motorized and 52.9% tank) and the largest Luftwaffe air fleet (43.8% aircraft). In the offensive zone of Army Group Center in the immediate vicinity of the border there were only 15 Soviet divisions, and 14 were located 50-100 km from it. In addition, troops of the 22nd Army from the Ural Military District were concentrated on the territory of the district in the Polotsk region, from which, by June 22, 1941, 3 rifle divisions and the 21st mechanized corps from the Moscow Military District arrived at the site - with a total number of 72,016 people, 1241 guns and mortars and 692 tanks. As a result, the ZAPOVO troops maintained at peacetime levels were inferior to the enemy only in personnel, but superior to him in tanks, aircraft and slightly in artillery. However, unlike the troops of Army Group Center, they did not complete their concentration, which made it possible to defeat them piecemeal.

Army Group Center was supposed to carry out a double envelopment of the Zapovovo troops located in the Bialystok ledge with a strike from Suwalki and Brest to Minsk, so the main forces of the army group were deployed on the flanks. The main blow was struck from the south (from Brest). The 3rd Wehrmacht tank group was deployed on the northern flank (Suwalki), which was opposed by units of the 11th Army of the PribOVO. Troops of the 43rd Army Corps of the 4th Army were deployed in the zone of the Soviet 4th Army German army and 2nd Panzer Group. In these areas the enemy was able to achieve significant superiority (see Table 6).

Southwest

In the South-Western direction, Army Group "South", which united German, Romanian, Hungarian and Croatian troops, was opposed by parts of the Kyiv Special and Odessa Military Districts (KOVO and OdVO). The Soviet group in the South-Western direction was the strongest on the entire front, since it was it that was supposed to deliver the main blow to the enemy. However, here too Soviet troops did not complete concentration and deployment. Thus, in KOVO there were only 16 divisions in the immediate vicinity of the border, and 14 were located 50-100 km from it. In the OdVO there were 9 divisions in the 50-km border strip, and 6 were located in the 50-100-km strip. In addition, troops of the 16th and 19th armies arrived on the territory of the districts, from which by June 22, 10 divisions (7 rifle, 2 tank and 1 motorized) with a total number of 129,675 people, 1,505 guns and mortars and 1,071 tanks were concentrated. Even without being staffed according to wartime levels, the Soviet troops were superior to the enemy group, which had only some superiority in manpower, but was significantly inferior in tanks, aircraft and somewhat less in artillery. But in the direction of the main attack of Army Group South, where the Soviet 5th Army was opposed by parts of the German 6th Army and the 1st Panzer Group, the enemy managed to achieve a better balance of forces for themselves (see Table 7).

Situation in the North

The most favorable situation for the Red Army was on the front of the Leningrad Military District (LMD), where it was opposed by Finnish troops and units of the German Army “Norway”. In the Far North, the troops of the Soviet 14th Army were opposed by German units of the Norway Mountain Infantry Corps and the 36th Army Corps, and here the enemy had superiority in manpower and insignificant artillery (see Table 8). True, it should be taken into account that since military operations on the Soviet-Finnish border began in late June - early July 1941, both sides were building up their forces, and the data provided do not reflect the number of troops of the parties at the beginning of hostilities.

Results

Thus, the German command, having deployed the main part of the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front, was unable to achieve overwhelming superiority not only in the zone of the entire future front, but also in the zones of individual army groups. However, the Red Army was not mobilized and did not complete the process of strategic concentration and deployment. As a result, parts of the first echelon of covering troops were significantly inferior to the enemy, whose troops were deployed directly near the border. This arrangement of the Soviet troops made it possible to destroy them piece by piece. In the directions of the main attacks of the army groups, the German command managed to create a superiority over the Red Army troops, which was close to overwhelming. The most favorable balance of forces developed for the Wehrmacht in the zone of Army Group Center, since it was in this direction that the main blow of the entire Eastern Campaign was delivered. In other directions, even in the zones of the covering armies, Soviet superiority in tanks affected. The general balance of forces allowed the Soviet command to prevent enemy superiority even in the directions of its main attacks. But in reality the opposite happened.

Since the Soviet military-political leadership incorrectly assessed the degree of threat of a German attack, the Red Army, having begun strategic concentration and deployment in the Western theater of operations in May 1941, which was supposed to be completed by July 15, 1941, was taken by surprise on June 22 and had no neither offensive nor defensive grouping. The Soviet troops were not mobilized, did not have deployed rear structures, and were only completing the creation of command and control bodies in the theater of operations. On the front from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathians, out of 77 divisions of the Red Army’s covering troops in the first hours of the war, only 38 incompletely mobilized divisions could repel the enemy, of which only a few managed to occupy equipped positions on the border. The remaining troops were either in places of permanent deployment, or in camps, or on the march. If we take into account that the enemy immediately launched 103 divisions on the offensive, it is clear that an organized entry into the battle and the creation of a continuous front of Soviet troops was extremely difficult. Having forestalled the Soviet troops in strategic deployment, creating powerful operational groupings of their fully combat-ready forces in selected directions of the main attack, the German command created favorable conditions for seizing the strategic initiative and successfully carrying out the first offensive operations.

Notes
1. For more details, see: Meltyukhov M.I. Stalin's missed chance. Scramble for Europe 1939-1941 (Documents, facts, judgments). 3rd ed., corrected. and additional M., 2008. pp. 354-363.
2. Shubin A.V. The world is on the edge of the abyss. From global crisis to world war. 1929-1941. M., 2004. P. 496.

THE USSR. Armed Forces of the USSR

The Armed Forces of the USSR are a military organization of the Soviet state, designed to protect the socialist gains of the Soviet people, freedom and independence of the Soviet Union. Together with the armed forces of other socialist countries, they ensure the security of the entire socialist community from the attacks of aggressors.

The Armed Forces of the USSR are fundamentally different from the armed forces of the exploiting states. In capitalist states, the armed forces are a weapon of oppression of the working people, the aggressive policies of imperialist circles, and the seizure and enslavement of other countries. The Armed Forces of the USSR were built on the principles of socialist consciousness, patriotism, friendship of peoples and represent a stronghold of universal peace and progress. They are national in their composition, purpose and place in the political organization of society. The ideological basis for the education of their personnel is Marxism-Leninism. This constitutes their main characteristics, the meaning and significance of all activities; they contain the sources of their strength and power. “Our army is a special army in the sense that it is a school of internationalism, a school of instilling feelings of brotherhood, solidarity and mutual respect for all nations and nationalities of the Soviet Union. Our Armed Forces are a single friendly family, the living embodiment of socialist internationalism" (Brezhnev L.I., Lenin Course, vol. 4, 1974, p. 61). The internationalism of the Armed Forces of the USSR is manifested in the ever-increasing strengthening of their fraternal ties and military cooperation with the armies of other socialist countries.

The Armed Forces of the USSR are divided into types: Strategic Missile Forces, Ground Forces, Air Defense Forces, Air Force, Navy , and also include the rear of the Armed Forces , headquarters and troops of the Civil Defense (See Civil Defense). The branches of the Armed Forces, in turn, are divided into types of troops, types of forces (Navy) and special forces, which organizationally consist of subunits, units, and formations. The Armed Forces also include border and internal troops. The Armed Forces of the USSR have a unified system of organization and recruitment, centralized management, uniform principles of training and education of personnel and training of command personnel, a general procedure for serving as privates, non-commissioned officers and officers.

The highest leadership of the country's defense and the Armed Forces of the USSR is carried out by the Central Committee of the CPSU and the highest body of state power - the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR appoints and dismisses the highest military command, declares general and partial mobilization, martial law, and a state of war. The leadership of the CPSU Armed Forces is the basis of all military development. The main provisions of the Soviet military doctrine follow from the policies of the CPSU and the Soviet government (See Military doctrine).

Direct leadership of the Armed Forces is exercised by the USSR Ministry of Defense. All branches of the Armed Forces, the rear of the Armed Forces, headquarters and Civil Defense troops are subordinate to him. Each branch of the Armed Forces is led by a corresponding commander-in-chief, who is a deputy. Minister of Defense The border and internal troops are led, respectively, by the State Security Committee under the Council of Ministers of the USSR and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR. The Ministry of Defense includes the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR, the directorates of the commanders-in-chief of the branches of the Armed Forces, the Logistics Directorate of the Armed Forces, the main and central directorates (the Main Personnel Directorate, the Central Financial Directorate, the Administrative Department, etc.), as well as military administrative bodies and civil service institutions. defense The Ministry of Defense, among other tasks, is entrusted with: developing plans for the construction and development of the Armed Forces in peacetime and war, improving the organization of troops, weapons, military equipment, providing the Armed Forces with weapons and all types of material supplies, managing the operational and combat training of troops and a number of others functions determined by the requirements of state protection. The leadership of party-political work in the Armed Forces of the CPSU Central Committee is carried out through the Main Political Directorate of the Soviet Army and Navy , operating as a department of the CPSU Central Committee. It directs political bodies, army and navy party and Komsomol organizations, ensures party influence on all aspects of the life of military personnel, directs the activities of political bodies and party organizations to increase the combat readiness of troops, strengthen military discipline and the political and moral state of personnel.

Material and technical support The Armed Forces are carried out by departments and logistics services subordinate to the Deputy Minister of Defense - the Chief of Logistics of the Armed Forces.

The territory of the USSR is divided into military districts (See Military district). A military district may cover the territories of several territories, republics or regions. To fulfill allied obligations to jointly ensure the security of socialist states, groups of Soviet troops are temporarily stationed in the territories of the GDR, Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. In the branches of the Armed Forces, military districts, groups of troops, air defense districts, and fleets, military councils have been created that have the right to consider and decide all important issues of the life and activities of the troops of the corresponding branch of the Armed Forces or district. They bear full responsibility to the Central Committee of the CPSU, the government and the Minister of Defense of the USSR for the implementation of party and government decisions in the Armed Forces, as well as orders of the Minister of Defense.

The formation of the Armed Forces by privates, sergeants and senior officers is carried out by calling up Soviet citizens for active military service, which, according to the Constitution of the USSR and the Law on General Military Duty of 1967, is an honorable duty of citizens of the USSR (see Military duty in the USSR). Conscription is carried out by order of the Minister of Defense everywhere 2 times a year: in May - June and in November - December. Male citizens who have reached the age of 18 by the day of conscription are called up for active military service for a period of service from 1.5 to 3 years, depending on their education and the type of Armed Forces. Additional source Recruitment is the admission of military personnel and reserve personnel on a voluntary basis to the positions of warrant officers and midshipmen, as well as for long-term service. Officer cadres are recruited on a voluntary basis. Officers are trained in higher and secondary military schools of the relevant branches of the Armed Forces and branches of the military; political officers - in higher military-political schools. To prepare young men for admission to higher military educational institutions, there are Suvorov and Nakhimov schools. Advanced training of officers is carried out at higher courses improvement of the officer corps, as well as in the system of combat and political training. Leading command, political, engineering and other officer cadres are trained in military, air force, naval and special academies.

The history of the Soviet Army and Navy began with the formation of the world's first socialist state. After the victory of the October Revolution of 1917, the Soviet people had to not only build a new society, but also defend it with arms in hand from internal counter-revolution and repeated attacks by international imperialism. The Armed Forces of the USSR were created directly by the Communist Party under the leadership. V.I. Lenin, based on the provisions of the Marxist-Leninist teaching on war and the army. By the resolution of the 2nd All-Russian Congress of Soviets of October 26 (November 8), 1917, during the formation of the Soviet government, a Committee on Military and Naval Affairs was created consisting of V. A. Antonov-Ovseenko, N. V. Krylenko, P. E. Dybenko; from October 27 (November 9), 1917 it was called the Council of People's Commissars for Military and Naval Affairs, from December 1917 - the College of Military Commissars, from February 1918 - 2 People's Commissars: for military and naval affairs. The main armed force in overthrowing the rule of the bourgeoisie and landowners and winning the power of the working people were the Red Guard and the revolutionary sailors of the Baltic Fleet, soldiers of the Petrograd and other garrisons. Relying on the working class and the peasant poor, they played a major role in the victory of the October Revolution of 1917, in the defense of the young Soviet Republic in the center and locally, in the defeat of the counter-revolutionary uprisings of Kerensky - Krasnov near Petrograd, Kaledin on the Don, and Dutov at the end of 1917 - beginning of 1918 in the Southern Urals, in ensuring the Triumphal Procession of Soviet Power (See Triumphal Procession of Soviet Power) throughout Russia.

“... The Red Guards did the noblest and greatest historical work of liberating the working people and the exploited from the oppression of the exploiters” (V.I. Lenin, Poln. sobr. soch., 5th ed., vol. 36, p. 177).

At the beginning of 1918, it became obvious that the forces of the Red Guard, as well as detachments of revolutionary soldiers and sailors, were clearly not enough to reliably defend the Soviet state. In an effort to strangle the revolution, the imperialist states, primarily Germany, undertook an intervention against the young Soviet Republic, which merged with the rise of internal counter-revolution: White Guard rebellions and conspiracies of the Socialist Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and the remnants of various bourgeois parties. Regular armed forces were needed that could protect the Soviet state from numerous enemies.

On January 15 (28), 1918, the Council of People's Commissars adopted a decree on the creation of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA), and on January 29 (February 11) - a decree on the creation of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Fleet (RKKF) on a voluntary basis. Direct supervision of the formation of the Red Army was carried out by the All-Russian Collegium, established by the Council of People's Commissars on January 15 (28), 1918 under the People's Commissariat for Military Affairs. In connection with Germany’s violation of the truce and its troops going on the offensive, the Soviet government on February 22 addressed the people with a decree-appeal written by Lenin, “The Socialist Fatherland is in Danger!” This decree marked the beginning of the mass enrollment of volunteers in the Red Army and the formation of many of its units. In commemoration of the general mobilization of revolutionary forces to defend the socialist Fatherland, as well as the courageous resistance of the Red Army units to the invaders, February 23 is celebrated annually in the USSR as a national holiday - the Day of the Soviet Army and Navy.

In the years Civil War 1918-20 the construction of the Red Army and the Red Army was carried out in extremely difficult conditions. The country's economy was undermined, railway transport was disorganized, the army was supplied with food irregularly, and there were not enough weapons and uniforms. The army did not have the required number of command personnel; Means. Some of the officers of the old army were on the side of the counter-revolution. The peasantry, from which the rank and file and junior command staff were mainly recruited, devastated by the 1st World War of 1914-18, were not inclined to voluntarily join the army. All these difficulties were aggravated by the sabotage of the old bureaucracy, the bourgeois intelligentsia and the kulaks.

On July 10, 1918, the 5th All-Russian Congress of Soviets adopted a resolution “On the organization of the Red Army” on the basis of universal military service for workers aged 18 to 40 years. The transition to compulsory military service made it possible to sharply increase the size of the Red Army. By the beginning of September 1918, there were already 550 thousand people in its ranks. On September 6, 1918, simultaneously with the declaration of martial law in the country, instead of the Supreme Military Council, the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic (RVSR) was created, whose functions included operational and organizational management troops. In September 1918, the functions and personnel of the People's Commissariat for Military Affairs were transferred to the RVSR, and in December 1918 - the People's Commissariat for Maritime Affairs (became part of the RVSR as the Naval Department). The RVSR led the active army through its member - the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces of the Republic (commander-in-chief: from September 1918 - I. I. Vatsetis, from July 1919 - S. S. Kamenev). On September 6, 1918, the Field Headquarters of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic was established (February 10, 1921, merged with the All-Russian Headquarters into the Headquarters of the Red Army), subordinate to the commander-in-chief and engaged in training troops and directing military operations.

Party political work in the army and navy was carried out by the Central Committee of the RCP (b) through the All-Russian Bureau of Military Commissars (created on April 8, 1918), which on April 18, 1919, by decision of the 8th Party Congress, was replaced by a department of the RVSR, renamed on May 26, 1919 to the Political Directorate (PUR) under the RVSR, which was also a department of the Central Committee of the RCP (o). In the troops, party political work was carried out by political departments and party organizations (cells).

In 1919, based on the decisions of the 8th Party Congress, the transition to a regular mass army was completed, with a strong proletarian, politically conscious, personnel core, a unified recruitment system, a stable organization of troops, centralized control and an effective party-political apparatus. The construction of the Armed Forces of the USSR took place in a bitter struggle with the “military opposition” (See Military opposition) , which opposed the creation of a regular army, defended the remnants of partisanship in command and control and the conduct of war, and underestimated the role of old military specialists.

By the end of 1919, the number of the Red Army reached 3 million people, by the fall of 1920 - 5.5 million people. The share of workers was 15%, peasants - 77%, others - 8%. In total, in 1918-20, 88 rifle and 29 cavalry divisions, 67 air detachments (300-400 aircraft), as well as a number of artillery and armored units and subunits were formed. There were 2 spare (reserve) armies (Republic and South-Eastern Front) and units of the Vsevobuch, in which about 800 thousand people were trained. During the Civil War, 6 military academies and over 150 courses and schools (October 1920) trained 40 thousand commanders from workers and peasants. On August 1, 1920, there were about 300 thousand communists in the Red Army and Navy (about 1/2 of the entire party), who were the cementing core of the army and navy. About 50 thousand of them died a heroic death during the Civil War.

In the summer and autumn of 1918, active troops began to be consolidated into armies and fronts led by revolutionary military councils (RMC) of 2-4 members. By the fall of 1919, there were 7 fronts, each with 2-5 armies. In total, the fronts had 16-18 combined arms armies, one Cavalry Army (See Cavalry Army) (1st) and several separate cavalry corps. In 1920 the 2nd Cavalry Army was formed.

During the fight against the interventionists and the White Guards, mainly the weapons of the old army were used. At the same time, the emergency measures taken by the party to establish the military industry and the unparalleled heroism of the working class made it possible to move to the organized supply of Soviet-made weapons, ammunition and uniforms to the Red Army. The average monthly production of rifles in 1920 was more than 56 thousand units, cartridges - 58 million units. In 1919, aviation enterprises built 258 and repaired 50 aircraft.

Along with the creation of the Red Army, Soviet Military Science was born and developed. , based on the Marxist-Leninist teaching on war and the army, the practice of the revolutionary struggle of the masses, the achievements of military theory of the past, creatively revised in relation to new conditions. The first regulations of the Red Army were published: in 1918 - Charter internal service, Charter of garrison service, Field regulations, in 1919 - Disciplinary regulations. A great contribution to Soviet military science were Lenin’s provisions on the essence and nature of war, the role of the masses, the social system, and the economy in achieving victory. Already at that time it was clearly evident character traits Soviet art of war(See Art of War): revolutionary creative activity; intransigence to the template; the ability to determine the direction of the main attack; a reasonable combination of offensive and defensive actions; pursuit of the enemy until his complete destruction, etc.

After the victorious end of the Civil War and the decisive defeat of the combined forces of interventionists and White Guards, the Red Army was transferred to a peaceful position and by the end of 1924 its strength was reduced by 10 times. Simultaneously with demobilization, the Armed Forces were strengthened. In 1923, the united People's Commissariat for Military and Naval Affairs was recreated. As a result of the military reform of 1924-25 (See Military reform of 1924-25), the central apparatus was reduced and updated, new units and formations were introduced, the social composition of command personnel was improved, and new regulations, manuals and guidelines were developed and implemented. The most important issue of military reform was the transition to a mixed system of recruiting troops, which made it possible to have a small personnel army in peacetime with minimal expenditure of funds for its maintenance in combination with territorial police formations of internal districts (see Territorial police structure). Most of the formations and units of the border districts, technical and special troops, and the Navy remained personnel. Instead of L. D. Trotsky (from 1918 - People's Commissar for Military Affairs and Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic), who sought to tear the Red Army and Navy away from the party leadership, on January 26, 1925, M. V. Frunze was appointed Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR and People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs, after his death of which K.E. Voroshilov became People's Commissar.

The first all-Union law “On compulsory military service", adopted on September 18, 1925 by the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, consolidated the measures taken during the military reform. This law determined the organizational structure of the Armed Forces, which included the Ground Forces (infantry, cavalry, artillery, armored forces, engineering troops, signal troops), Air Force and Naval Forces, troops of the United State Political Administration (OGPU) and the USSR escort guards. Their number in 1927 was 586 thousand people.

In the 30s on the basis of the successes achieved in building socialism, further improvement of the Armed Forces took place; their territorial and personnel structure ceased to meet the needs of state defense. In 1935-38, a transition was made from the territorial personnel system to a unified personnel structure of the Armed Forces. In 1937, there were 1.5 million people in the ranks of the army and navy, in June 1941 - about 5 million people. On June 20, 1934, the Central Executive Committee of the USSR abolished the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR and renamed the People's Commissariat for Military and Naval Affairs into the People's Commissariat of Defense of the USSR. In November 1934, the Military Council of the People's Commissariat of Defense was created, in 1937 military councils in the districts, and in 1935 the Headquarters of the Red Army was transformed into the General Staff. In 1937, the all-Union People's Commissariat of the Navy was created; The political directorate of the Red Army was renamed the Main Directorate of Political Propaganda, and the political directorates of districts and political departments of formations were renamed into directorates and departments of political propaganda. On May 10, 1937, by decree of the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, the institution of military commissars was introduced, responsible together with commanders for the political and moral state of the troops, operational and mobilization readiness, and the condition of weapons and military equipment; in 1938 the main military councils of the Red Army were established; Army and Navy.

On September 1, 1939, the law “On General Military Duty” was adopted, which abolished the previously existing restrictions on conscription into the army and navy for certain categories of the population and proclaimed military service an honorable duty for all citizens of the USSR, regardless of their class affiliation.

The social composition of the army improved: from 40 to 50% of soldiers and junior commanders were representatives of the working class. In 1939, there were 14 military academies, 63 military schools of the Ground Forces and 14 Navy, 32 flight and flight technical schools. On September 22, 1935, personal military ranks were introduced (see Military ranks) , and on May 7, 1940 - general and admiral ranks. In terms of technical equipment, the Armed Forces during the pre-war five-year plans (1929-40) rose to the level of the armies of advanced capitalist states. In the Ground Forces in 1939 compared to 1930, the number of artillery increased; in 7, including anti-tank and tank - 70 times. The number of tanks increased 2.5 times from 1934 to 1939. Along with the quantitative growth of weapons and military equipment, their quality has improved. A noticeable step has been made in increasing the rate of fire of small arms. Mechanization and motorization of all types of troops increased. Air defense, engineering, communications, and chemical defense troops were armed with new technical equipment. Based on the successes of aircraft and engine manufacturing, the Air Force further developed. In 1939, compared to 1930, the total number of aircraft increased by 6.5 times. The Navy began construction of surface ships of various classes, submarines, torpedo boats, as well as naval aircraft. Compared to 1939, the volume of military production in 1940 increased by more than 1/3. Through the efforts of the design bureau teams of A. I. Mikoyan, M. I. Gurevich, A. S. Yakovlev, S. A. Lavochkin, S. V. Ilyushin, V. M. Petlyakov and others, and workers in the aviation industry, various types were created fighter aircraft: Yak-1, MiG-Z, LaGG-Z, Pe-2 dive bomber, Il-2 attack aircraft. The design teams of Zh. Ya. Kotin, M. I. Koshkin, A. A. Morozov, I. A. Kucherenko put into serial production the world's best heavy and medium tanks KV-1 and T-34. The design bureaus of V. G. Grabin, I. I. Ivanov, F. I. Petrov and others created new original types of artillery guns and mortars, many of which entered mass production. From May 1940 to the beginning of the Great Patriotic War 1941-45 the gun fleet increased by more than 1.2 times. Designers Yu. A. Pobedonostsev, I. I. Gvai, V. A. Artemyev, F. I. Poyda and others created rocket weapons for salvo firing at areas. A large group of designers and scientists - A. N. Krylov, P. N. Papkovich, V. L. Pozdyunin, V. I. Kostenko, A. N. Maslov, B. M. Malinin, V. F. Popov and others. , developed several new types of warships that were put into mass production. Factories producing small arms, ammunition, fuels and lubricants, etc. achieved great success in 1940-41.

Increased technical equipment made it possible on the eve of the war to significantly improve the organizational structure of the troops. The rifle divisions included tanks, powerful divisional artillery, anti-tank and anti-aircraft artillery, which significantly increased their firepower. Further development received the organization of reserve artillery of the High Command (RGK). Instead of separate tank and armored brigades, which since 1939 had been the main formations of armored forces, the formation of larger formations began - tank and mechanized divisions. Airborne corps began to be formed in the airborne troops, and in the Air Force they began to switch to a divisional organization in 1940. The Navy organized formations and associations intended for joint actions with ground forces and for conducting independent operations.

Military strategy, operational art and tactics received further development. In the mid-30s. the theory of deep combat and deep operation is being developed (See Deep operation) , reflecting qualitative changes in the technical equipment of troops - a fundamentally new theory of conducting operations by massive, highly mobile, well-equipped armies. Theoretical provisions were tested during maneuvers and exercises, as well as during the combat operations of the Red Army in the area of ​​Lake Khasan, river. Khalkhin Gol, in the Soviet-Finnish war 1939-40. Many charters and instructions were developed anew. In 1940, the troops received the Infantry Combat Regulations (Part 1), draft Field Regulations and Infantry Combat Regulations (Part 2), the Tank Forces Combat Regulations, the Combat Regulations, the Guard Service Regulations, etc. On May 7, 1940, S. was appointed People's Commissar of Defense. K. Timoshenko.

Despite the measures taken, the preparation of the Armed Forces to repel the aggression being prepared by German fascism was not completed. The reorganization of the Armed Forces on a new technical basis was not completed by the beginning of the war. Most of the formations transferred to new states were not fully equipped with weapons and military equipment, as well as vehicles. Many mid- and senior-level commanders lacked experience in modern warfare.

Great Patriotic War. the war of 1941-45 was the most difficult test for the Soviet people and the Armed Forces of the USSR. Nazi troops, due to the surprise of the attack, lengthy preparation for war, 2 years of experience in military operations in Europe, superiority in the number of weapons, the number of troops and other temporary advantages, managed in the first months of the war, regardless of losses, to advance hundreds of kilometers deep into Soviet territory . The CPSU and the Soviet government did everything necessary to eliminate the mortal threat hanging over the country. From the beginning of the war, the deployment of the Armed Forces was carried out in an organized manner and in a short time. By July 1, 1941, 5.3 million people were called up from the reserves. The entire life of the country was restructured on a military basis. The main sectors of the economy switched to the production of military products. In July - November 1941, 1,360 were evacuated from front-line areas large enterprises, mainly for defense purposes. On June 30, 1941, an emergency body was formed - the State Defense Committee (GKO) under the chairmanship of I.V. Stalin. On July 19, 1941, J.V. Stalin was appointed People's Commissar of Defense, who on August 8 also became the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The State Defense Committee led the entire life of the country, combining the efforts of the rear and the front, the activities of all government agencies, party and public organizations to completely defeat the enemy. Fundamental issues of governing the state and waging war were decided by the Party Central Committee - the Politburo, the Organizing Bureau and the Secretariat. Decisions made carried out through the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, the State Defense Committee and the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command (See Headquarters of the Supreme High Command) , created on August 8, 1941. The Headquarters carried out strategic leadership of the Armed Forces with the help of its working body - the General Staff. The most important issues of warfare were discussed at joint meetings of the Politburo of the Central Committee, the State Defense Committee and Headquarters.

Since the beginning of the war, the training of officers has been expanded by increasing the number of students at academies, school cadets and reducing the duration of training, creating a large number of courses for accelerated training of junior officers, especially among soldiers and sergeants. From September 1941, units that distinguished themselves began to be given the name Guards (see Soviet Guard).

Thanks to the emergency measures taken by the CPSU and the Soviet government, mass heroism and unprecedented self-sacrifice of the Soviet people, army and navy soldiers, by the end of 1941 it was possible to stop the enemy on the approaches to Moscow, Leningrad and other vital centers of the country. During the Battle of Moscow 1941-42 (See Battle of Moscow 1941-42) the first major defeat was inflicted on the enemy in the entire 2nd world war. This battle dispelled the myth of the invincibility of the Nazi army, thwarted the “blitzkrieg” plan, and was the beginning of a decisive turn in the war in favor of the USSR.

In the summer of 1942, the center of military operations moved to the southern wing of the Soviet-German front. The enemy was eager for the Volga, the oil of the Caucasus, and the grain-growing regions of the Don and Kuban. The Party and the Soviet government made every effort to stop the enemy and continued to increase the power of the Armed Forces. By the spring of 1942, the Armed Forces included 5.5 million people in the active army alone. From mid-1942, industry began to increase the output of military products and more fully meet the needs of the front. If in 1941 15,735 aircraft were produced, then in 1942 there were already 25,436, tanks, respectively, 6,590 and 24,446, and ammunition production almost doubled. In 1942, 575 thousand officers were sent to the army. In the Battle of Stalingrad 1942-1943 (See Battle of Stalingrad 1942-43), Soviet troops defeated the enemy and seized the strategic initiative. This victory was the beginning of a radical change not only in the Great Patriotic War, but also in the entire 2nd World War.

In 1943, military production developed rapidly: the production of aircraft increased by 137.1% compared to 1942, warships by 123%, submachine guns by 134.3%, shells by 116.9%, and aerial bombs by 173.3%. Overall, military production increased by 17%, and fascist Germany by 12%. The Soviet defense industry managed to surpass the enemy not only in the quantity of weapons, but also in their quality. The massive production of artillery pieces made it possible to strengthen divisional artillery, create corps, army artillery and powerful reserve artillery of the Supreme High Command (RVGK), new units and units of rocket, anti-tank and anti-aircraft artillery. A significant number of tank and mechanized corps were formed, most of which were later consolidated into a tank. army. Armored and mechanized troops became the main striking force of the Ground Forces (by the end of 1943 they included 5 tank armies, 24 tank and 13 mechanized corps). The composition of air divisions, corps and air armies has increased.

A significant increase in the power of the Soviet Armed Forces and the increased leadership skill of its military leaders made it possible to inflict a major defeat on the fascist troops in the Battle of Kursk 1943 (See Battle of Kursk 1943), which placed fascist Germany before a military catastrophe.

Decisive victories were won by the USSR Armed Forces in 1944-45. By this time, they had enormous combat experience, possessed colossal power, and by the beginning of 1945 they numbered 11,365 thousand people. The advantages of the socialist economic system, the vitality economic policy CPSU and the Soviet government. In 1943-45, an average of 220 thousand artillery pieces and mortars, 450 thousand machine guns, 40 thousand aircraft, 30 thousand tanks, self-propelled guns and armored vehicles were produced annually. New types of aircraft were produced in large quantities - La-7, Yak-9, Il-10, Tu-2, heavy tanks IS-2, self-propelled artillery systems ISU-122, ISU-152 and SU-100, rocket launchers BM- 31-12, 160 -mm mortars and other military equipment. As a result of strategic offensive operations, including near Leningrad and Novgorod, in Crimea, on Right Bank Ukraine, in Belarus, Moldova, the Baltic states and in the Arctic, the Armed Forces cleared Soviet land of invaders. Developing a rapid offensive, Soviet troops in 1945 carried out East Prussian, Vistula-Oder and other operations. IN Berlin operation they achieved the final defeat of Nazi Germany. The Armed Forces fulfilled a great liberation mission - they helped the peoples of the countries of the East and South to get rid of fascist occupation. of Eastern Europe.

Fulfilling our allied obligations, Soviet Union in August 1945 entered the war with Japan. The Armed Forces of the USSR, together with the armed forces of the Mongolian People's Republic, defeated the Japanese Kwantung Army and thereby played a decisive role in ending World War II (see Manchurian Operation 1945).

The leading force of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War was the Communist Party. During the war, she sent over 1.6 million communists to the front, during the war in the ranks Communist Party about 6 million people joined.

The Party and the Soviet government appreciated the exploits of soldiers on the war fronts. Over 7 million soldiers were awarded orders and medals; over 11,600 of them - representatives of 100 nations and nationalities - were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. About half of all awarded soldiers are communists and Komsomol members.

During the war, the USSR Armed Forces acquired enormous combat experience. Soviet military science, especially military art and all its components - strategy, operational art and tactics - received further development. The issues of front-line and strategic offensive operations of a group of fronts were comprehensively developed, the problems of breaking through enemy defenses, continuity of offensive development by introducing mobile - tank and mechanized formations and formations into the breakthrough, achieving clear interaction of forces and means, surprise strikes, comprehensive support for operations, issues of strategic defense and counter-offensive.

Having defeated the armies of fascist Germany and imperialist Japan, the Armed Forces of the USSR emerged from the war organizationally stronger, equipped with the latest technology, with a sense of fulfilled duty to the Soviet people and all humanity. Mass layoffs of personnel began. On September 4, 1945, the State Defense Committee was abolished, and the Supreme Command Headquarters ceased its activities. On February 25, 1946, instead of the People's Commissariat of Defense and the Navy, a single People's Commissariat of the Armed Forces of the USSR was created, which in March 1946 was renamed the Ministry of the Armed Forces of the USSR. In February 1950 it was divided into the Military Ministry and the Navy Ministry of the USSR, which in March 1953 were merged into the USSR Ministry of Defense. The ministers of defense were: Generalissimo of the Soviet Union I. V. Stalin (until March 1947), Marshals of the Soviet Union N. A. Bulganin (March 1947 - March 1949; March 1953 - January 1955), A. M. Vasilevsky (April 1949 - March 1953), G. K. Zhukov (February 1955 - October 1957), R. Ya. Malinovsky (October 1957 - March 1967), A. A. Grechko (April 1967 - April 1976). Since April 1976, the Minister of Defense of the USSR has been an army general, since July 30, 1976, Marshal of the Soviet Union D. F. Ustinov.

After the war, reactionary imperialist circles unleashed the so-called. cold war and created the aggressive military bloc NATO (1949). In such conditions, the USSR was forced to take measures to strengthen its defense power, strengthen the Armed Forces, and increase combat readiness. In counterbalance to imperialist machinations and in response to the creation of NATO, the socialist countries, as a forced measure, concluded a defense agreement. Warsaw Pact 1955.

Increased opportunities Soviet economy, achievements of science and technology have expanded the scientific and technical foundations of the combat power of the Armed Forces. During the 7-8 post-war years, they were equipped with new, more advanced automatic weapons, tanks, artillery, radar and other military equipment, full motorization and mechanization was carried out, and aviation received jet types of aircraft. In a relatively short period of time, the USSR won a historic victory in the competition imposed by the imperialists to develop new military equipment, created nuclear and thermonuclear weapons and eliminated the US monopoly in this area. At the same time, in an effort to ease tensions and establish lasting peace, the USSR decided to reduce the size of its Armed Forces: in 1955 - by 640 thousand people, by June 1956 - by 1200 thousand people.

Since the mid-50s. The Armed Forces have entered a new stage of development - a stage of fundamental qualitative transformations caused by the massive introduction of missiles, nuclear weapons and the latest military equipment. The qualitative renewal of weapons and military equipment caused significant changes in the forms and methods of training and education of personnel in the mobilization system, organizational structure troops (naval forces), in their views on the forms and methods of conducting military operations. An important phenomenon in the construction of the Armed Forces of the USSR, which increased the defense power of the USSR and the entire socialist camp, was the creation of a new branch of the USSR Armed Forces - the Strategic Missile Forces (1960).

Great changes have occurred in each branch of the Armed Forces, and the relationship between them has changed.

The Strategic Missile Forces are designed to solve strategic problems when waging war using nuclear weapons. They are equipped with automated missile systems with intercontinental and medium-range missiles with enormous destructive power.

The Ground Forces are the most massive and versatile branch of the USSR Armed Forces. They have great fire and striking power, high maneuverability and combat independence, are capable of interacting with other branches of the Armed Forces and independently solving problems of defeating the enemy in land theaters of military operations, both with and without the use of nuclear weapons, consolidating and maintaining occupied positions. territory. They consist of motorized rifle, tank, airborne troops, missile troops and artillery, air defense troops, which are branches of the military. Motorized rifle and tank troops are the main branches of the Ground Forces. They have high mobility, great maneuverability and powerful fire. The basis of their combat power is armored vehicles (tanks, armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles). Motorized rifle and tank. troops can conduct a rapid offensive, defeat enemy troop groups, capture vital areas, stubbornly defend and repel enemy attacks, and hold occupied lines.

Airborne troops are a branch of the military equipped with air transportable self-propelled artillery, rocket, anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, armored personnel carriers and other weapons and military equipment. They are designed to conduct combat operations in the rear or on the coastal flank of the enemy, deny the approach of his reserves, destroy nuclear attack weapons, control posts, capture communications centers, airfields, bases and crossings.

The Missile Forces are the backbone of the Ground Forces' firepower. They are armed with missile weapons for operational and tactical purposes with a range from several tens to several hundred km, capable of hitting any targets with great accuracy and reliability with nuclear weapons, destroying entire enemy units and various important objects located in its rear. Rocket and cannon artillery, mortars and anti-tank guided missiles have powerful fire. The air defense troops are equipped with mobile anti-aircraft missile systems, self-propelled multi-barreled anti-aircraft artillery, radar systems for detecting enemy air and automated control systems. They are capable of reliably covering the Ground Forces from air strikes in any situation and terrain, day and night, from a standstill and on the move.

The country's air defense troops protect the population, administrative, political, industrial centers, troop groups and other important facilities from enemy air strikes. Their main task is to repel any air attack by the aggressor. The basis of the combat power of the country's Air Defense Forces is made up of qualitatively new types of troops - anti-aircraft missile forces and air defense aviation, which is armed with all-weather supersonic missile-carrying fighter-interceptors. The tasks of detecting an air enemy, targeting anti-aircraft missile forces and fighter aircraft are solved by radio engineering troops, which are also a branch of the military.

The Air Force is designed to solve various tasks independently and in cooperation with other branches of the Armed Forces in continental and maritime theaters of military operations; destroying the enemy's nuclear weapons, defeating (weakening) his aviation groups, air support for the Ground Forces and the Navy, air transfer of troops, conducting aerial reconnaissance, landing troops, providing communications, etc. They have great striking power, the ability to quickly carry out wide maneuvers, and high accuracy defeat of moving, small objects. The Air Force consists of long-range, front-line and military transport aviation. The branches of the Air Force include: bomber, fighter-bomber (attack), fighter, reconnaissance, transport and special aviation.

ARMED FORCES OF THE USSR, a state military organization that formed the basis of the military power of the USSR.

By the beginning of the Great Patriotic War they consisted of the Ground Forces, the Air Force, Navy, Air defense troops of the country's territory, Logistics of the Armed Forces. The Armed Forces also included border troops and internal troops. At the beginning of the war, on the territory of the country there were 16 military districts, 1 front (Far Eastern), and there were also 4 fleets (Northern, Baltic, Black Sea, Pacific) and 3 separate military flotillas (Pinsk, Caspian and Amur).

The highest leadership of the country's defense and armed forces was carried out by the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR. He coordinated all activities aimed at strengthening the military potential and increasing the defense capability of the USSR by a special body of the Council of People's Commissars - the USSR Defense Committee.

Direct control of the Armed Forces was carried out by the People's Commissariat of Defense (from May 1940, People's Commissar Marshal of the Soviet Union S.K. Timoshenko) and the People's Commissariat of the Navy (from April 1939, People's Commissar of the Fleet Flagship 2nd Rank, from June 1940, Adm. N.G. Kuznetsov). Under the chairmanship of the People's Commissar of Defense and the People's Commissar of the Navy, the main military councils of the Kyrgyz Republic functioned as collegial bodies. army and navy. General Staff of Kr. The army was headed by Gen. army G.K. Zhukov.

The situation grew rapidly in the late 1930s. the threat of war placed high demands on the organization and training of the USSR Armed Forces, increasing their combat readiness and combat effectiveness. The most important tasks in the construction of the Armed Forces at that time were to increase the number of troops (forces), increase their technical equipment, and establish an optimal ratio of the number of types of Armed Forces.

Based on the conclusions of Sov. military science that the main role in a future war, allocated to the Ground Forces, the ratio of types of armed forces in terms of the number of personnel as of June 1941 was (in%): Ground Forces - 79.3; Air Force - 11.5; Navy - 5.8; Air defense troops of the country's territory - 3.4. In the Ground Forces, the main emphasis was on development rifle troops, armored forces, artillery. The cavalry, airborne troops, railway, road, engineering, chemical forces, Signal Corps. The Air Force focused on the development of fighter and bomber aircraft, and created attack aircraft. The Navy was replenished with new surface ships and submarines.

Particularly noticeable was the increase in the technical equipment of the USSR Armed Forces in 1939 - 1st half. 1941. Compared to 1939, the volume of military production in 1941 increased by 30%. During this period, new types of heavy and medium tanks were put into mass production, new artillery guns and powerful rocket weapons for salvo firing at area targets were developed, new types of fighters, a dive bomber, an attack aircraft, and several types of warships for light naval forces were created.

Scientists and designers ensured high quality and reliability of the owls. military equipment in many respects is the best in the world: La-5 fighters (designer S.A. Lavochkin) and Yak-9 (A.S. Yakovleva), Il-2 attack aircraft (S.V. Ilyushin), Pe-2 bomber ( V.M. Petlyakov), medium tank T-34 (M.I. Koshkin) and heavy KV (Zh.Ya. Kotin), fighting machine rocket artillery BM-13 "Katyusha" (I.T. Kleymenov and G.E. Langemak), etc. Geologists discovered new deposits of strategic materials (bauxite, manganese, molybdenum). Methods were developed for demagnetizing warships (I.V. Kurchatov, A.P. Aleksandrov), automatic welding of armor (E.O. Platon), and automatic machines for producing cartridges were designed. Great strides have been made in the field of military medicine, which made it possible to subsequently return St. 70% of wounded soldiers.

The organizational structure of the troops has improved significantly. The rifle division included tanks, more powerful divisional artillery, anti-tank and anti-aircraft artillery, which significantly increased their firepower and striking power. The RVGK artillery was further developed. Instead of separate tank and mechanized brigades, the formation of tank and motorized divisions began. In 1941 it was planned to form approx. 20 mechanized corps. In the airborne troops, which consisted of brigades, airborne corps were formed. There has been a transition to a divisional organization in the Air Force.

Simultaneously with the technical re-equipment of the army and navy, their numbers increased. The Law on General Military Duty, adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on September 1, 1939, legally completed the transfer of the Red Army and Navy to a personnel system and allowed them to increase their numbers, which by mid-1941 amounted to 4.6 million people. In total, the Ground Forces by this time had 303 divisions (of which about 1/4 were at the stage of formation). However, not all planned organizational and other measures for the armed forces were completed by the beginning of the war. Motorization of the infantry remained insufficient; the rearmament of formations and units with new types of weapons and military equipment was not completed. Most of the units transferred to new states were not fully equipped with weapons, military equipment and vehicles. Sov. military science in the pre-war years did not fully take into account the possibility of a sudden invasion by large enemy forces and did not sufficiently develop methods of conducting defense on an operational and strategic scale.

Despite the large scale of training military personnel, the system military educational institutions could not keep up with the pace of aircraft deployment. The consequences of political repression in 1937–39 and in subsequent years, to which many Sovs were unjustifiably subjected, had an impact. military leaders, commanders and political workers. Most of the reserve command personnel were unable to undergo retraining before the start of the war. The share of command personnel with higher military education in 1940 decreased by more than 2 times compared to 1936. Due to a large reshuffle of personnel in the top and middle levels of management, which was carried out in the midst of rearmament and the transition to new forms of organization, commanders promoted to responsible positions and bosses did not have enough time to acquire the experience necessary to work in new, higher positions.

Major miscalculations were made in determining the timing, direction and force of the blows. troops. Serious errors occurred in the selection of aviation basing areas and the placement of material and technical supplies, most of which were located near the state. borders. The deployment of armed forces groups did not have a clear plan. The Red Army did not have sufficient experience in conducting modern warfare, organizing the interaction of troops, or effectively using new weapons and military equipment.

After the attack of Germany on June 22, 1941, the USSR began a radical restructuring of the entire military organization of the state. On June 30, 1941, an emergency body was formed - the State Defense Committee (GKO) under the chairmanship of I.V. Stalin, who also became People's Commissar of Defense (July 19, 1941) and Supreme Commander-in-Chief (August 8, 1941). For the strategic leadership of the Armed Forces, the Headquarters of the Main Command was formed on July 10, 1941 (see. Headquarters of the Supreme High Command), the main body of which became the General Staff of the Red Army, intermediate leadership bodies were created - the main commands of the troops of the directions (abolished in May - June 1942). On the basis of the border military districts, 5 fronts were formed (during the war there were 10–15 of them at different periods), which became operational-strategic formations of the Armed Forces. On July 1, 1941, 5.3 million people were drafted into the Armed Forces for mobilization. Active Army from June 1941 to November. 1942 increased from 2.9 million to 6.6 million people. Mobilization made it possible to expand preparations reserves and strengthen the main troop groups.

However, in the initial period of the war, the advanced strategic echelon of the Red Army was defeated, the enemy captured significant territory of the USSR and approached Moscow and Leningrad. By the end of 1941, through extraordinary measures, the self-sacrifice of the people, and the heroism of the army and navy, it was possible to stop the enemy and thwart his “blitzkrieg” plan. The Battle of Moscow 1941–42 dispelled the myth of his invincibility. army. In the summer of 1942, the center of military operations moved to the southern wing Soviet-German front.

In ever-increasing sizes, the army received weapons and military equipment, and above all their main types - artillery, tanks, and airplanes. From Dec. 1941 to Nov. 1942 the number of the most important combat weapons increased: for guns and mortars - from 22 thousand to 77.8 (without anti-aircraft guns), for tanks - from 1954 to 7350, for combat aircraft - from 2238 to 4544 units. The organizational structure of all military branches and special forces continued to be improved. In June 1941, the formation of rocket artillery units began. In September, in the battles near Yelnya, the Soviet Guard was born. In 1941–42, mechanized corps, artillery divisions of the RVGK, engineer armies, regiments, battalions and radio communications divisions, companies of high-explosive flamethrowers, and departments were formed. flamethrower tank battalions and dept. flamethrower-tank brigades of the RVGK, automobile battalions, railway brigades.

By the end of the first period of the war, the striking power of the Ground Forces increased, which was determined by the quantitative and qualitative growth of armored and mechanized forces, artillery and military air defense. In Aug. 1941 The Air Force was reorganized - the number of regiments and divisions and aircraft in the regiments decreased. Regiments for night operations, reserve aviation groups, and, from March 1942, attack aviation groups at the disposal of the Supreme High Command Headquarters were formed. From May 1942, operational aviation associations—air armies—began to be formed at the air force bases of the fronts. From Nov. 1941 began a radical reorganization of air defense. In the Navy, units and formations of fleets were transferred to wartime levels in a short time, and new units were formed. By the end of 1941, 46 new ships of the main classes entered service.

With the beginning of the war, the system of training and education of command personnel and specialists underwent restructuring. Academies and military school cadets graduated early. In 1942, 53 new military schools were opened. The capabilities of the pre-war network of military educational institutions were also increased by increasing their capacity and reducing the duration of training. A large number of front-line and army courses were created for accelerated training of junior officers. In July 1941, the institution of military commissars was introduced (abolished on October 9, 1942). The power of the USSR Armed Forces continued to grow: by the summer of 1942, they included approx. 11 million people, including in the active army - St. 5.5 million people From mid-1942, the defense industry began to increase the output of military products and more fully meet the needs of the front. As a result of the measures taken by the USSR Armed Forces, despite the losses incurred, by mid-November. 1942 were significantly strengthened organizationally, their technical equipment improved, the troops acquired combat experience, and the combat skills of the personnel increased. In fierce battles and battles, the Red Army and Navy inflicted heavy defeats on the enemy near Leningrad, in Moscow and Battle of Stalingrad, in the North Caucasus and seized the strategic initiative in the war.

In the second period of the war (November 1942 - December 1943), organizational measures in the army and navy were aimed at ensuring the massive use and effective use of military equipment, a significant increase in the fire and strike power of all types of armed forces and branches of the military. By mid-1943, in the USSR Armed Forces, compared to the end of 1942, the number of weapons increased by 1.3 times, armored vehicles - by 1.4, aircraft - by 2.3 times. The Red Army surpassed him. troops in tanks and artillery almost 2 times, in aircraft 3 times. Total in the active army in December. In 1943 there were 11 fronts, 66 directorates of combined arms armies and 3 tank armies. The massive production of weapons in 1943 made it possible to strengthen divisional artillery and create corps, army and powerful artillery of the RVGK. A significant number of tank and mechanized corps were formed, most of which were later consolidated into tank armies of homogeneous composition. Armored and mechanized troops became the main striking force of the Ground Forces (by the end of 1943 they included 24 tank and 13 mechanized divisions, about 50% were part of 5 tank armies).

The increasing role of aviation during the war, the quantitative and qualitative growth of the aircraft fleet determined the need for new, significant organizational changes in the Air Force. The composition of air divisions, corps and air armies has increased. The country's Air Defense Forces have strengthened organizationally and grown in numbers. The Navy continued to create naval defensive areas, the number of marines increased, and new naval formations were formed. The problem of creating strategic reserves was successfully resolved. Thus, during the winter campaign of 1942/43, the Headquarters transferred to the fronts from its reserve 4 tank armies, 29 tank and mechanized corps, 108 rifle, 23 artillery, 26 anti-aircraft artillery, 19 aviation divisions, 16 engineering brigades and other formations and units, and in the summer and autumn of 1943 there were 2 times more combined arms formations, and 3 times more tank and aviation formations than in winter.

In 1943, a qualitatively new stage in the construction of the USSR Armed Forces was completed: significant changes took place in their military-technical equipment and organizational structure, in the development of military art, and the personnel accumulated a wealth of experience in conducting combat operations. This was reflected in the newly published statutory documents: the Combat Manual of the Infantry (1942), the draft Field Manual of the Red Army and a number of regulations of the military branches. At the beginning of 1943, new insignia were introduced - shoulder straps. In order to increase the authority of command personnel and their responsibility, in July 1943 the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR established a new procedure for assigning military ranks. All command and management personnel in the rank of ml. Lieutenant up to and including colonel began to be called officers. The growth of combat power and the strengthening of the morale of the troops allowed the USSR Armed Forces to win victories in Battle of Kursk, Battle of the Dnieper 1943, successfully carry out a number of other operations. From Nov. 1942 to Dec. 1943 The Red Army fought from 500 to 1300 km and liberated it. invaders a significant part of the occupied Soviet Union. territories. And by the end of 1944, the territory of the USSR was completely cleared of the enemy.

In the third period of the war (Jan. 1944 - May 1945), the Red Army continued to be equipped with weapons and military equipment. Compared to the first period of the war, the number of fronts on the fronts increased: tanks and self-propelled guns - by 4-6 times, guns and mortars - by 4-5, aircraft - by 4-8 times. By the beginning of 1945, there were 9.4 million people and 144.2 thousand troops in the active army, in the Reserve Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, on the southern and Far Eastern borders. and mortars, 15.7 thousand tanks and self-propelled guns, 22.6 thousand combat aircraft. Compared to June 1944, the number of armed forces increased by more than 300 thousand people, the number of tanks and self-propelled guns - by 3.9 thousand, guns and mortars - by 11 thousand, combat aircraft - by 820. Most of the USSR Armed Forces were concentrated in Soviet-German front, where they outnumbered the enemy in guns and mortars by almost 4 times, in tanks and self-propelled guns by 3 times, and in combat aircraft by 8 times. The dominant position was still occupied by the Ground Forces. In terms of personnel, by the end of the war they accounted for 80%, the Air Force - St. 8%. The share of air defense troops increased from 3.3% in December. 1941 to 5% in May 1945, and the Navy fell from 5.8% in 1941 to 3.6% in June 1943, and then increased to 5.3% in May 1945.

In 1945, the USSR Armed Forces together with the allied armies of the countries anti-Hitler coalition liberated Europe from occupation and finally defeated Germany and its allies.

The final act of World War II for the Sov. The union became the Soviet-Japanese war of 1945 in the Far East, in which the USSR Armed Forces quickly defeated the Japanese Kwantung Army.

During the Great Patriotic War, the USSR Armed Forces covered themselves with unfading glory. For the military feats of St. 7 million owls soldiers were awarded orders and medals, approx. 11.6 thousand were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Union. Mass heroism was characteristic not only of individual soldiers, but also of entire units, formations and associations. For distinction in battles for the Fatherland with him. The invaders awarded regiments and divisions 10.9 thousand military orders. Many of them were awarded orders several times. Moscow saluted the valiant owls 354 times. troops and navy. Hundreds of military formations and units were awarded honorary titles.

The defeat of the most powerful and dangerous armed forces for the world community, fascist Germany and militaristic Japan, was a severe test for the armed forces and peoples of the USSR, and they passed this test with honor. The Soviet Armed Forces expelled the enemy from the USSR and defended the independence and territorial integrity of the country. The fascist bloc suffered a complete and crushing defeat, Germany unconditionally capitulated. The USSR Armed Forces played a decisive role in ridding the peoples of Europe and Asia from the threat of the Nazis. enslavement brought them freedom and peace. The entry of the USSR into the war in the Far East accelerated the defeat of militaristic Japan.

Research Institute ( military history) VAGSH RF Armed Forces

Not a trace remains of the military potential of the former Soviet republics.

At the end of February, the commander of the Airborne Forces, General Vladimir Shamanov, said that the Russian Airborne Forces could be sent to carry out combat missions as quick reaction forces outside Russia, for example, to countries party to the Collective Security Treaty. “Our Version” looked into what military forces remained in the former Soviet republics: whom Russia will have to protect, and whom to look at through the crosshairs.

More than 20 years ago, in December 1991, the Armed Forces of the USSR, numbering 4,210 thousand people, were fragmented and turned into 15 independent armies. Some managed to succeed more in development, others never became full-fledged armies. Meanwhile, all these armed groups are somewhat similar and have common features With Russian army.

The most powerful ally is Belarus, the weakest is Kyrgyzstan

As the head of the scientific and analytical center on the problems of national security information agency “Arms of Russia” Anatoly Tsyganok, the main allies of Russia are the armies of the countries participating in the Collective Security Treaty - these are Belarus, Kazakhstan and Armenia, in addition, the CSTO includes Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Belarus is Russia's most combat-ready ally. And it is no coincidence: at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union, the concentration of military formations and units on its territory was the highest in Europe. In addition, a huge number of warehouses with military equipment and various military equipment were concentrated here. There were nuclear weapons on the territory of the country, which it was decided to abandon.

Over two decades, the size of the Belarusian army has decreased from 280 to 62 thousand people. The number of armored vehicles has decreased by 1.5–2 times and amounts to more than 4 thousand tanks and armored personnel carriers, but the number of airplanes, helicopters and modern systems The air defense of the zealous Belarusians is growing. There are more than 300 aircraft in service.

The army of Kazakhstan was created on the basis of military facilities and formations of the Central Asian and partly Turkestan military districts. The republic received military equipment from the 70s, brought from Eastern Europe. The Strategic Missile Forces and strategic aviation were also stationed on the territory of the republic; in exchange for their transfer to Russia, Kazakhstan received conventional weapons. Today the Air Force has more than a hundred combat aircraft. The ground component is 1 thousand tanks, 2.5 thousand infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, more than 800 different artillery systems and guns. The Kazakh fleet has 9 patrol boats.

The army of Kazakhstan is constantly decreasing, today the number of personnel is about 65 thousand people. There are no problems with recruiting troops in Kazakhstan; here they have managed to do what they talk about a lot in Russia: a career in government agencies is closed to those who have not served.

Basis for national army The units and military equipment of the 7th Army of the former Transcaucasian Military District became part of Armenia. This is the only army in the post-Soviet space whose numbers have almost tripled. Most experts rate it as the most combat-ready in Transcaucasia. Personnel - 60 thousand people, hundreds of tanks, 200 armored personnel carriers, more than 200 artillery systems, about 50 combat aircraft and attack helicopters. Since 2004, Russia has been supplying Armenia with weapons at relatively low prices, as a member of the CSTO. In 2005, Armenia managed to receive $7 million from the United States for the rearmament of the army.

Tajikistan inherited a minimum of weapons from the Soviet army, so there is a catastrophic lack of equipment in the troops. Although officially the army of Tajikistan consists of four brigades, an anti-aircraft missile regiment and a helicopter regiment, in fact, several battalions are combat-ready. There is a big problem with the officer corps, half of the positions are vacant, most of the current officers do not have higher education.

Kyrgyzstan is also a rather weak ally. According to experts, the army basically does not exist in this country; its weapons were sold and stolen. During the Tulip Revolution, the military did not influence the situation. The military personnel is about 8 thousand people, but about 500-600 people actually know how to fight, the so-called combined units, which are formed exclusively from officers. And this despite the active work of American instructors in the country.

The army of Moldova is under the control of the Romanian special services

After the collapse of the USSR, Ukraine inherited a modern, powerful army - three very strong military districts, three air armies and even nuclear forces. Initially total number The Ukrainian army numbered about 800 thousand people, and the troops were fully equipped with the most modern military equipment. At one time, Ukraine ranked fourth in the world in terms of military potential; it was rumored that if a war broke out between Russia and Ukraine, it was still unknown who would win. However, within 20 years this powerful force was squandered. Military equipment was stolen, rotted or sold. The total sale of the army brought Ukraine into the group of the world's leading arms exporters. About 6 thousand tanks and 1 thousand combat aircraft remain in service.

basis armed forces Uzbekistan became the Turkestan Military District. The country's army employs 65 thousand people, and it is rated as the most combat-ready in Central Asia. The weapons are Soviet, from the early 80s, their reserves are large, there are more than 2 thousand tanks in storage alone, however, not all the equipment is in working order. But there are agreements on the supply from Russia of modern artillery systems, transport and combat helicopters, air defense systems and ammunition. There are no problems with recruiting, it is prestigious to serve in the army, there are still benefits, the service is a social lift.

The basis of the Turkmen army was parts of the former Turkestan Military District. Today 34 thousand people serve. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, a large amount of military equipment remained on the territory of Turkmenistan, which belonged to units withdrawn from Afghanistan. There are more than fifty tanks in service, 300 various types airplanes. But even despite this potential, experts are skeptical about the combat effectiveness of Turkmen troops. In the republic, there is an acute issue with military personnel; Russian military specialists left the country back in the 90s, and the locals do not master military affairs well. There is a shortage of officers in the troops; even at parades, planes are flown by invited pilots from Ukraine.

The Azerbaijani army was formed from parts of the former Transcaucasian Military District and part of the Caspian Flotilla. Currently, its population is estimated at about 70 thousand people. With the help of foreign specialists, NATO standards are being implemented. At the same time, the state military department buys military equipment and weapons from Ukraine. Attempts are being made to establish our own military-industrial complex; small arms, mortars and even armored vehicles are already being produced. The main problem of the Azerbaijani army is widespread corruption.

The 6,000-strong army of Moldova is in a deplorable state. The equipment and weapons are almost completely out of order. The exodus of officers due to low salaries further aggravates the disaster. NATO has repeatedly initiated various options for “military reforms,” but the attempts only further reduced its defense capability. At the same time, the army is practically under the control of the Romanian special services.

The Latvian Air Force consists of "maize fighters"

The armies of all the former Baltic republics are members of NATO, in fact, they are potential opponents for Russia, but there is no need to fear them - the number of these armies is quite small and, like everyone else, there are problems with financing.

Lithuania is the most militarized Baltic republic; there are 10 thousand military personnel protecting the interests of the republic, of which almost 11% are women. The Lithuanian army is armed with American and Western European-made weapons and equipment, but Soviet-made examples are still found. There is even a fleet - two small anti-submarine ships and four patrol boats. The issue of purchasing combat helicopters is being resolved.

The Estonian Defense Army consists of more than 5 thousand people, divided into eight battalions and an artillery division. The fleet is a faulty corvette, two boats and four minesweepers. They are armed with a hundred guns, but the problem with armored vehicles is that during exercises they periodically rent a tank from their Latvian neighbors.

In Latvia, the army, equal in size to the Estonian one, consists of an infantry battalion, an artillery division and three training centers. It is armed with three T-55 training tanks, the main striking force of the Air Force is the An-2 “maize”, the Navy consists of patrol boats, minesweepers, mine hunting boats and self-propelled barges, in the near future local shipbuilders promise to build their own warships

The Georgian army is the only one with whom Russia had to fight today; its strength was clearly demonstrated by the results of the eight-day war in 2008. The armed forces of the republic were created on the basis of Soviet units of the Transcaucasian Military District. Now the number of Georgian armed forces is 37 thousand people. Until 2003, the Georgian army was armed with outdated Soviet equipment, but after the “Rose Revolution” its modernization began. NATO countries supplied weapons to this republic free of charge, so the country’s military budget in 2007 increased 50 times and reached a maximum of $780 million. Foreign instructors are trying to teach Georgians. After the war with Russia, almost a third of this formidable army was destroyed and put out of action. Now Georgia is actively restoring its military potential.

The main military potential of the Department of Internal Affairs was the USSR Armed Forces. Their development after 1945 can be roughly divided into 3 periods. 1st period - after the end of the Great Patriotic War until the creation of a new type of armed forces - the Strategic Missile Forces (Strategic Missile Forces) in the late 1950s; 2nd period - late 1950 - early 1970s; 3rd period - from the beginning of 1970 to the beginning of the 1990s. After the end of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Union began to reduce its armed forces. A massive demobilization of soldiers and officers was carried out, as a result of which the number of armed forces decreased by almost 3.4 times (from 11,365 thousand people in May 1945 to 2874 thousand people by the beginning of 1948). September 4, 1945 By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the State Defense Committee was abolished. The Supreme Command Headquarters also ceased its activities.

In February - March 1946, the People's Commissariats of Defense and the Navy were united into the Ministry of the Armed Forces, and in February 1950 the latter was divided into the Ministry of War and the Ministry of the Navy. The Supreme Military Council, created in March 1950 under the Council of Ministers, became the highest state body for the management of all armed forces. In March 1953, both ministries were reunited into the USSR Ministry of Defense. The Main Military Council was formed under him. This structure existed until the collapse of the USSR.

JV Stalin remained the People's Commissar and then the Minister of the Armed Forces until March 1947. From March 1947 to March 1949, the ministry was headed by Marshal of the Soviet Union N.A. Bulganin. From April 1949 to March 1953, the Minister of the Armed Forces, and then the Minister of War, was Marshal of the Soviet Union A. M. Vasilevsky.

One of the main directions in the military development of the USSR was the creation and improvement of new means of armed struggle, and above all atomic weapons. On December 25, 1946, an atomic reactor was launched in the USSR, and in August 1949, an experimental explosion was carried out atomic bomb, and in August 1953 the world's first hydrogen bomb was tested. At the same time, the creation of means of delivering nuclear weapons and the formation of missile units was underway. The first of them - special purpose brigades equipped with R-1 and R-2 missiles in conventional equipment - began to be created in 1946.

1st period. The USSR Armed Forces in 1946 had three types: Ground Forces, Air Force and Navy. The country's Air Defense Forces and Airborne Forces had organizational independence. The Armed Forces included the Border Troops and the Internal Troops.

In connection with the end of the war, associations, formations and units of the USSR Armed Forces moved to areas of permanent deployment and were transferred to new states. In order to quickly and organizedly reduce the army and transfer it to a peaceful position, the number of military districts was significantly increased. The administrations of the fronts and some armies were directed to their formation.

The main and most numerous type of armed forces remained the Ground Forces, which included rifle, armored and mechanized troops, artillery, cavalry and special troops (engineering, chemical, communications, automobile, road, etc.).

The main operational unit of the Ground Forces was the combined arms army. In addition to combined arms formations

V its composition included units of army anti-tank and anti-aircraft artillery, mortar, engineer and other army units. With the motorization of divisions and the inclusion of a heavy tank-self-propelled regiment in the army's combat structure, it essentially acquired the properties of a mechanized formation.

The main types of combined arms formations were rifle, mechanized and tank divisions. The rifle corps was considered the highest combined arms tactical formation. The combined arms army included several rifle corps.

There was a military-technical and organizational strengthening of rifle regiments and rifle divisions. The number of automatic weapons and artillery in units and formations was increased (standard tanks and self-propelled guns appeared in them). Thus, a battery of self-propelled guns was introduced into the rifle regiment, and a self-propelled tank regiment, a separate anti-aircraft artillery division, a second artillery regiment and other units were added to the rifle division. The widespread introduction of motor transport equipment into the troops led to the motorization of the rifle division.

Rifle units were armed with hand-held and mounted anti-tank grenade launchers, which ensured effective combat against tanks at ranges of up to 300 m (RPG-1, RPG-2 and SG-82). In 1949, a set of new small arms was adopted for service, including a Simonov self-loading carbine, a Kalashnikov assault rifle, a Degtyarev light machine gun, a company RP-46 machine gun, and a modernized Goryunov heavy machine gun.

Instead of tank armies, mechanized armies were created, which included 2 tank, 2 mechanized divisions and army units. The mechanized army fully retained the mobility of the previous tank army with a significant increase in the number of tanks, self-propelled guns, field and anti-aircraft artillery. Tank and mechanized corps were transformed into tank and mechanized divisions, respectively. At the same time, the combat and maneuverability of armored vehicles has increased significantly. The PT-76 light amphibious tank was created, the T-54 medium tank, and IS-4 and T-10 heavy tanks, which had stronger weapons and armor protection, were adopted.

Under the conditions of the technical revolution, cavalry units did not develop and were abolished in 1954.

The military artillery and reserve artillery of the Supreme High Command have undergone major changes. Development was carried out mainly in the direction of increasing the number of guns and mortars in artillery units, units and formations, as well as improving artillery fire control. At the same time, the number of anti-tank, anti-aircraft and rocket artillery formations within combined arms formations and operational formations increased. Moreover, along with an increase in firepower, artillery units and formations acquired high maneuverability. Equipping engineering, chemical and other special forces with new, more advanced equipment entailed a change in their organizational structure while simultaneously increasing the number of formations. In the engineering troops, this was expressed in the inclusion of technical units in all units, units and formations, including the reserve brigades of the Supreme High Command. In the chemical forces, under the influence of the real threat of the enemy using weapons of mass destruction, units and units intended to carry out anti-chemical and anti-nuclear defense measures have been strengthened. Formations equipped with radio relay stations and other modern control equipment arose in the communications troops. Radio communications covered all levels of troop command and control, up to and including the platoon and combat vehicle.

The country's air defense troops became an independent branch of the armed forces in 1948. During the same period, the country's air defense system underwent reorganization. The entire territory of the USSR was divided into a border strip and an internal territory. Air defense of the border strip was assigned to district commanders, and naval bases to fleet commanders. They were subordinate to military air defense systems located in the same zone. The internal territory was defended by the country's Air Defense Forces, which became a powerful and reliable means of covering the country's important centers and troop groups.

Since 1952, the country's Air Defense Forces began to be equipped with anti-aircraft missile technology, and the first units were created to service them. Air defense aviation was strengthened. In the early 1950s. The country's air defense forces received a new all-weather night fighter-interceptor Yak-25. All this has significantly increased the ability to combat enemy air targets.

The Air Force was divided into front-line and long-range aviation. Airborne transport aviation was formed (later transport airborne, and then military transport aviation). The organizational structure of front-line aviation was improved. Aviation was re-equipped from piston aircraft to jet and turboprop aircraft.

The Airborne Forces were withdrawn from the Air Force in 1946. On the basis of separate airborne brigades and some rifle divisions, parachute and landing formations and units were formed. The airborne corps was a combined arms operational-tactical formation designed to operate behind enemy lines in the interests of troops advancing from the front.

The Navy consisted of branches of the force: surface ships, submarines, naval aviation, coastal defense units and marines. At first, the development of the fleet went mainly along the path of creating squadrons of surface ships. However, subsequently there was a tendency to increase the proportion of submarine forces, which have great prospects for conducting combat operations in the vastness of the World Ocean, far from their main bases.

Thus, in the first post-war years, a major reorganization of the Soviet Armed Forces was carried out, caused by the reduction of the army and navy, their transfer to a more advanced material and technical base, as well as the need to increase the combat readiness of the troops. The improvement of the organization proceeded mainly along the path of creating new and improving the structure of existing types of armed forces, increasing the combat power of military formations.

The introduction of nuclear weapons into the troops, fundamental changes in views on the methods of unleashing and the nature of a future war required significant adjustments to be made in the development of the army and navy. The main work in this direction was assigned to the USSR Ministry of Defense, headed by the Minister of Defense.

2nd period. Since the mid-1950s. special attention was paid to equipping the army and navy with nuclear missile weapons. The most important organizational event was the creation in December 1959 of a new branch of the USSR Armed Forces - the Strategic Missile Forces. The 2nd period in the development of the aircraft began.

Organizationally, the USSR Armed Forces began to include the Strategic Missile Forces, Ground Forces, Air Defense Forces, Air Force, Navy, and Civil Defense Forces. Border troops of the State Security Committee of the USSR and Internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR.

With the development of the Strategic Missile Forces, the main thing was not the buildup of conventional weapons, but their reduction to a level of reasonable sufficiency for defense, which was supposed to ensure savings in forces and resources.

The ground forces continued to be the largest branch of the armed forces. The main striking force of the Army was tank troops, and the basis of firepower were missile troops and artillery, which became a new unified branch of the military. In addition, the Army included: air defense troops, airborne troops and army aviation. Special troops were replenished with units intended for electronic warfare (EW).

Air defense systems of the Ground Forces developed rapidly. A fundamentally new weapon was created - highly mobile anti-aircraft missile systems "Krug", "Cube", "Osa", providing reliable cover for troops, as well as man-portable anti-aircraft missile systems "Strela-2" and "Strela-3". At the same time, ZSU-23-4 Shilka self-propelled anti-aircraft guns entered service. New radio equipment made it possible not only to detect, identify and monitor a target, but also to provide data on the air situation, aim weapons at a target and fire control.

The change in the nature and methods of combat operations necessitated the development of army aviation. The speed and carrying capacity of transport helicopters have increased. Transport-combat and combat helicopters were created.

The Airborne Forces continued to be equipped with new weapons and military equipment while simultaneously improving the organizational structure of their formations and units. They received air transportable self-propelled artillery, rocket, anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, special automatic small arms, parachute equipment, etc.

The technical equipment of special troops, primarily communications, engineering, chemical, and electronic warfare units, has changed significantly, and their organization has become more advanced. Electronic warfare units and subunits have received new jamming stations for short-wave and ultra-short-wave radio communications, as well as on-board radars of enemy aircraft.

The chemical troops had units for chemical protection, special control, degassing and disinfection of the area, radiation and chemical reconnaissance, flamethrowers, smoke emission, etc. They received a small-sized radiometer-roentgenometer “Mete-or-I”, a radiation and chemical reconnaissance device “Electron-I”. 2" and other equipment.

The engineering troops consisted of engineer-sapper, transport-landing, pontoon, road-engineering and other units and units. Engineering equipment was replenished with minelayers, track mine trawls, high-speed trench vehicles, a regimental earth-moving machine, a machine for clearing debris, track-laying machines, bridge-laying machines, excavation machines, a new pontoon-and-bridge park and other equipment.

The Air Force consisted of long-range, front-line and military transport aviation. Long-range aviation was part of the strategic nuclear forces. Its units were armed with Tu-95MS strategic bombers and Tu-22M long-range missile-carrying bombers. Aircraft missiles, both nuclear and conventional, could hit enemy targets without aircraft entering the range of their air defense systems.

The structure of front-line aviation has been improved and its share has increased. Fighter and bomber aviation established itself as a new kind of aircraft. Aviation units of front-line aviation were equipped with increasingly advanced fighters (from MiG-19 to MiG-23, Yak-28), Su-17, Su-7b fighter-bombers, reconnaissance aircraft, as well as combat and transport helicopters. Combat aircraft with variable sweep wings and vertical takeoff and landing did not require complex runway equipment and had a long flight duration in subsonic modes. The aircraft were equipped with missiles of various classes and aerial bombs in nuclear and conventional configurations, remote mining systems and other weapons.

Military transport aviation, armed with modern long-range military transport aircraft of various payloads - An-8, An-12, An-22, was capable of quickly transporting troops and heavy equipment, including tanks and missile systems, over long distances.

The Navy was a balanced system of various branches of forces, including submarines, surface ships, naval aviation, coastal missile and artillery forces, marines, and various special forces. Organizationally, the Navy consisted of the Northern, Pacific, Black Sea, Baltic fleets, the Caspian military flotilla, and the Leningrad naval base.

The development of the Navy followed the path of creating within the fleets formations of submarines and naval aviation, armed with missiles of various classes and purposes. Their nuclear missile weapons constituted an important component of the nuclear potential of the Armed Forces.

As a result of the widespread introduction of new types of weapons and military equipment, radio electronics, nuclear power on submarines and the improvement of the organizational structure, the combat capabilities of the Navy have sharply increased. It has become an ocean-going one, capable of performing strategic and operational tasks not only in coastal waters and closed seas, but also in the vastness of the World Ocean.

3rd period. The main attention was paid to building a diversified army and navy, maintaining the harmonious and balanced development of all types, branches of troops and forces, equipping them with the latest weapons and military equipment. By the mid-1970s. military-strategic (military) parity was achieved between the USSR and the USA, the Warsaw Department and NATO. Until the end of the 1980s. In general, it was possible to maintain the organizational structure of the Armed Forces at an optimal level, corresponding to the level of technical progress, the development of military affairs, the quality of weapons and the requirements of the time.

Taking into account the trends in the development of weapons in the US and NATO armies, the Soviet Union continued to improve its nuclear missile weapons - weapons of deterrence: missile systems were improved and modernized, their reliability and combat effectiveness increased, the power of nuclear charges and the accuracy of hitting monoblock and multiple warheads on the target increased. Strictly observing the provisions of the SALT II Treaty, the Soviet Union redistributed nuclear weapons among the components of the strategic “triad”. In the mid-1980s, up to 70% of the nuclear weapons in the USSR were ground-based ICBMs. The number of nuclear weapons deployed on strategic missile submarines has increased. The Strategic Missile Forces as a whole, the strategic forces of the Navy and Air Force were in constant readiness to launch a retaliatory strike.

In accordance with the country's defense plans, other types of armed forces were also improved - the Ground Forces and Air Defense Forces, as well as the general purpose forces of the Air Force and Navy, and the structures and weapons systems were optimized.

Particular attention was paid to the equipment of the Air Defense Forces. The development of air defense systems was focused on increasing their effectiveness in the fight against both enemy aircraft and ballistic missiles, which led to the creation of a new generation of highly effective anti-aircraft missile systems "S-300", "Buk", "Tor", anti-aircraft missile systems the Tunguska cannon system and the Igla man-portable anti-aircraft missile system. Air defense systems of the Ground Forces had high mobility, could be used in any weather conditions, quickly detect and reliably hit air targets at various altitudes.

In general, the combat power of the USSR Armed Forces was in no way inferior to the potential capabilities of the armies of the United States and other NATO countries.

Despite all the attempts of the USSR and other Eastern European countries to create a reliable system for ensuring international security based on UN principles after the end of World War II, the Western powers refused to cooperate with the socialist countries. The former allies of the USSR in the anti-Hitler coalition took the path of escalating military-political tensions and creating a military-political alliance (NATO) directed against the USSR and other socialist countries.

Achieving a military-strategic balance between the USSR and the USA, NATO and the Warsaw Division played a positive role in ensuring the security and political stability of the countries of the socialist camp. This was a factor in curbing the aggressive aspirations of the leading Western powers, led by the United States, towards the countries of Eastern Europe and the USSR.

Achieving military-strategic parity in the 1970s. made it possible to prevent the threat of a third world war and to concentrate the efforts of socialist countries on economic development and political system. However, the Cold War and the threat of a global nuclear military conflict caused a radical redistribution of capital investments in favor of the defense industry in all allied countries, which affected other industries and the material well-being of peoples.

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