At present, the country's leadership is paying close attention to the ambitious task of re-equipping the Russian armed forces with new equipment and weapons. In 2018, the state spent almost 1.5 trillion rubles on the implementation of the State Defense Order (SDO) through the Ministry of Defense. This amount was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting on the supply of the army and the work of the country's defense industry in May 2018.
At the end of December, Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko, who earlier from 2014 to June 2018 was the general director of JSC Concern Kalashnikov, spoke in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper about the figures and the results achieved in the implementation of the State Defense Order in 2018 in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper. According to a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Defense, the allocated amount of funds made it possible to ensure the planned development of the armament system of the Russian Armed Forces. According to Krivoruchko, in order to ensure the necessary pace of equipping Russian troops with modern weapons, military and special equipment (AME), about 70 percent of the designated amount of 1.5 trillion rubles was spent on serial complete purchases.
To increase the efficiency of SDO implementation, the RF Ministry of Defense implemented an additional set of measures, which took into account similar work experience in previous years of the program implementation. Among other things, the procedure for planning and implementing the SDO was clarified, this made it possible to optimize the tasks and work of various military command and control bodies in these areas. In addition, in 2018, for the first time, the work of operational headquarters (Navy and Aerospace Forces) was organized, which were responsible for solving problematic issues of execution and placement of SDO assignments with integrated structures and directly with enterprises of the Russian defense industry, which are executors of various government contracts.
Fulfillment of the state defense order in 2018 in numbers
According to Oleksiy Krivoruchko, the measures taken made it possible to contract most of the allocated funds (about 94%) in a timely manner before May 15, 2018 and start implementing the tasks of the state defense order. As a result, in 2018, the troops were able to supply about 115 thousand of various modern models and means, including more than 2.5 thousand main armaments and military equipment, which determine the combat power of the branches and arms of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Among the equipment supplied to the army, one can distinguish Su-34 front-line bombers, Su-30SM and Su-35S multifunctional fighters, Yak-130 combat training aircraft, Ka-52, Ka-226 and Mi-8 helicopters of various modifications. In total, in 2018, the Russian armed forces received more than 120 units of various aviation equipment.
Su-30SM fighter at the Irkut Corporation plant
Among the armored vehicles, Krivoruchko highlighted the large deliveries to the troops of the new BTR-82A armored personnel carriers and BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles, as well as the BMD-4M and BTR-MDM amphibious assault vehicles. In total, more than 300 units of armored weapons and equipment were transferred to the unit.
If we talk about missile and artillery weapons systems, then in 2018 the troops were supplied with Kornet and Chrysanthemum-SP ATGMs, Msta-SM self-propelled 152-mm howitzers, and the Iskander-M ATGM divisional kit, in addition, the troops received the Caliber and Onyx cruise missiles. In total - more than 120 units of various missile and artillery weapons.
If we talk about the Russian Navy, the frigate of project 22350 "Admiral of the Soviet Union Fleet Gorshkov", small missile ships of project 22800 "Mytishchi" and project 21631 "Orekhov-Zuevo" were accepted into the fleet. In addition, the fleet has been replenished with support vessels and a variety of combat boats. The new coastal missile systems "Bastion" and "Ball" were also transferred to the Navy. On December 25, 2018, a new corvette "Loud" of project 20380 entered the Pacific Fleet. Let us recall that the corvette "Loud" became the second ship of project 20380 out of four to be built in Komsomolsk-on-Amur at the Amur shipyard (ASZ) and transferred to the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy. The first warship was named "Perfect" and was transferred to the fleet in July 2017. In total, by the end of 2018, the Russian fleet was replenished with more than 20 ships and vessels for various purposes.
According to the President of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) Alexei Rakhmanov, the Russian Navy will receive 11 warships in 2018. He stated this in an interview with the Russia-24 TV channel. “4 warships will be repaired, on December 25 we will raise the Andreevsky flag on the corvette“Loud”in the Far East, and I hope that in a few days after that the minesweeper“Antonov”produced by the Sredne-Nevsky plant will be handed over to the Russian fleet,” noted Rakhmanov. According to IA REGNUM, the transfer of ships in the last week of December 2018 will ensure that the shipbuilding corporation fulfills the state defense order in 2018 by 100 percent - for the first time in the past five years.
Corvette project 20380 "Loud"
Oleksiy Krivoruchko especially noted the fact of supplying the armed forces with new anti-aircraft missile weapons and equipment. According to him, in 2018, the Pantsir-S air defense missile system and the Tor-M2 air defense system, including in the Arctic version, as well as the Buk-M3 air defense system and the S-400 Triumph air defense system were transferred to the Russian army. The unconditional novelties include the Buk-M3 air defense system, which was demonstrated to the general public only within the framework of the Army-2018 forum. At present, this air defense system is supplied to the troops and put on alert, in addition to this, it is being adapted for foreign customers (the export version will receive the designation "Viking"). The Buk-M3 is a truly new word in the development of medium-range air defense systems. The launchers of this complex can carry 6 or 12 missiles and are able to confidently hit aerodynamic targets at an altitude of 25-27 km and at a distance of up to 70 km.
In addition, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation received in 2018 more than 100 complexes of radar stations for various purposes, as well as small arms and equipment, modern communications, the latest electronic warfare systems, RChBZ and much more. For example, in 2018, the Kalashnikov concern, which is part of the Rostec state corporation, began supplying the troops with 5, 45-mm AK-12 assault rifles as part of the 2018 state defense order. According to the official website of the concern, on December 20, the first 2,500 assault rifles were shipped to the customer - the RF Ministry of Defense. The Russian military became the first customer to receive a new machine gun. For 2019 in Izhevsk, it is planned to enter a full-fledged large-scale production of new automatic weapons.
In addition to new equipment, the Russian armed forces received about 8, 5 thousand repaired and modernized models and weapons, including about two thousand basic ones. Directly in the troops in 2018, it was possible to carry out service maintenance of more than 57 thousand units of weapons, military and special equipment. All the above figures speak best of the well-coordinated work of the Russian Ministry of Defense and Russian defense industry enterprises in solving the most important state task - the implementation of the state defense order for 2018.
AK-12 assault rifle
At the end of 2018, it was possible to bring the level of equipment of constant readiness units with modern serial samples of military equipment to 61.5 percent, and the provision of troops with weapons and equipment to 98 percent, while maintaining the serviceability of the existing fleet of equipment at an average of 94 percent, noted Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko. According to him, almost all enterprises of the Russian defense industry have coped with their contractual obligations. At the same time, the timely execution of state contracts was not achieved for the entire range of weapons and equipment; work on correcting this situation will continue.
According to Yuri Borisov, Deputy Prime Minister for the Defense Industry Complex, the implementation of the state defense order at enterprises and organizations of the defense industry has been brought to an average of 97-98 percent, and, for example, in the state corporation Rosatom, it is 100 percent fulfilled. In an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Borisov noted: "If in 2012 the percentage of implementation of the planned measures for the state defense order was about 81 percent, then over the past few years we have managed to bring the level of fulfillment of the annual state defense order to 97-98 percent." According to him, this is already "a good indicator", but there is also a higher level, here he cited Rosatom as an example.
In the design, research organizations and at the enterprises of the nuclear weapons complex of the Russian Federation, it is not the first year that the tasks of the state defense order have been fulfilled in one hundred percent and, most often, ahead of schedule. This happened in 2018 as well. It should be noted that it is the atomic state corporation, in cooperation with the RF Ministry of Defense, that implements the Russian policy in the field of nuclear deterrence in practice. It not only supplies ground troops, navy and aviation with serial, already adopted nuclear charges and ammunition, but also searches for answers to new military and geopolitical threats and challenges of the time for our country.
Modernization of Russia's Strategic Nuclear Forces is a priority task
At present, the rearmament of the domestic grouping of the Strategic Nuclear Forces (SNF) is carried out taking into account the implementation by the United States of the "Global Strike" concept and the deployment of a global missile defense system. As early as May 7, 2012, Presidential Decree No. 603 stipulated, among other things, the priority development of the Russian nuclear deterrent forces. Currently, this issue is under special control of the Ministry of Defense and the country's leadership. The necessary financial resources are always allocated for the modernization of strategic nuclear forces.
Used by PJSC "Tupolev" as a prototype aircraft for testing modernization of the strategic bomber Tu-95MS. Artyom Anikeev / AviaPressPhoto
Commenting on the work in this direction for the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, Aleksey Krivoruchko noted that in 2018 successful throw tests of the new Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missile took place. The Aviation Strategic Nuclear Forces were replenished with five modernized aircraft - four Tu-95MS and one Tu-160. For them, the purchase of the required number of air-launched cruise missiles was carried out in full. The naval grouping of strategic nuclear forces was kept ready for use for its intended purpose. In 2018, Russia began testing a new strategic nuclear submarine of Project 955A Borey, which is the lead submarine of the updated project.
If we talk about long-term plans, then in 2019 the main efforts in the field of strategic nuclear forces will be focused on re-equipping the Russian strategic group with modern and promising complexes with improved tactical and technical characteristics. So in the Strategic Missile Forces, the first missile regiment will have to take up combat duty, which will receive the Avangard strategic missile system with an ICBM equipped with a gliding cruise warhead. In addition, it is planned to enter into the combat composition four next modernized Tu-95MS turboprop missile-carrying bomber. If we talk about the naval component of the strategic nuclear forces, then in 2019 it is planned to accept the lead nuclear submarine of the project 955A "Prince Vladimir", armed with the ICBM "Bulava", into the Navy.
Launch of a rocket complex "Avangard" from the positional area Dombarovskiy
On December 26, 2018, the Russian Ministry of Defense demonstrated a video of the successful launch of the Avangard missile system from the Dombarovskiy position area. As the official website of the President of Russia notes, the Avangard missile system successfully passed the final tests on Wednesday and will take up combat duty in the Strategic Missile Forces in 2019. Thus, Russia was the first in the world to have a new type of strategic weapons. During the flight at hypersonic speed, the gliding winged unit made vertical and horizontal controlled maneuvers and, at the appointed time, successfully hit a conditional target in Kamchatka at the Kura combat range. The capabilities of the tested gliding winged unit allow it to bypass the zones of action of the fire and information means of anti-missile defense, which makes it possible to effectively overcome existing and future missile defense systems.
According to the specialized military blog bmpd, this test launch was carried out using the UR-100N UTTH ICBM, which was equipped with a hypersonic gliding winged warhead of the Avangard complex. The launch was carried out from the positional area of the 13th Orenburg Red Banner Missile Division, which is part of the 31st Missile Army of the Strategic Missile Forces (Dombarovskiy, Orenburg Region). For launch, a modified silo launcher of R-36M2 ICBMs was used. In total, as part of the implementation of the State Armaments Program, designed for 2018-2027, it is planned to deploy two regiments of the Avangard complex with UR-100N UTTH missiles (12 in total) by the end of 2027. It is also known that in the future guided warheads of the Avangard complex may be installed on the new Sarmat ICBM, which will replace the R-36M Voevoda and have already received the designation Satan-2 in NATO codification.
State defense order plans for 2019
According to Aleksey Krivoruchko, in 2019, the amount of the same order as in 2018 is provided for the implementation of the state defense order in terms of purchases, repairs and R&D. In order to achieve the established indicators of the level of security and modernity of weapons in the troops, about 70 percent by 2020, funds will be directed primarily to serial purchases of various modern types of weapons and military equipment.
Main battle tank T-90M
As part of the implementation of the state defense order in 2019, supplies and repairs of more than 35 thousand systems, complexes and types of weapons are provided, including about 4500 basic models of weapons and military equipment. In 2019, Russia should receive the first production batch of fifth generation Su-57 fighters, as well as a batch of new Mi-28NM attack helicopters. The first flight of the unique Be-200 amphibious aircraft in a special design for the Russian Ministry of Defense is also expected. The ground forces will receive the first infantry fighting vehicles and tanks built on the Armata heavy tracked platform, as well as the T-90M main battle tanks and the Coalition-SV self-propelled artillery pieces. In general, in 2019 it is planned to bring the level of modernity of weapons and military equipment in permanent readiness units and formations to 67 percent by December 31, 2019 (an increase of 5.5 percent). The level of provision of Russian troops with weapons and military equipment is planned to be raised to 98.3 percent, and the serviceability of the park is to be maintained at 94 percent.
