Jump to content

Ministry of Defence (Russia): Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 55°43′40″N 37°35′22″E / 55.72778°N 37.58944°E / 55.72778; 37.58944
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Reverted 1 edit by Gandy.raja (talk): Unsourced
Undid revision 1263560320 by Aweemyre (talk) rvv
 
(100 intermediate revisions by 23 users not shown)
Line 8: Line 8:
| seal = Medium emblem of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation (21.07.2003-present).svg
| seal = Medium emblem of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation (21.07.2003-present).svg
| seal_caption = Ministry emblem
| seal_caption = Ministry emblem
| picture = МинОБОРОНЫ - panoramio.jpg
| picture = File:Moscow Frunzenskaya Embankment at Pushkinsky Bridge 08-2016.jpg
| picture_caption = [[General Staff Building (Moscow)|General Staff building]], the ministry headquarters
| picture_caption = The building of the [[National Defense Management Center]] on [[Frunzenskaya Embankment]] (house No. 22) in [[Moscow]], the ministry headquarters
| formed = 1717 as [[College of War]]
| formed = 16 March 1992 (first in 1717 as [[College of War]])
| headquarters = Znamenka 19, [[Moscow]], [[Russia]]<ref>RF MOS website www.mil.ru accessed 9 August 2012.</ref>
| headquarters = Znamenka 19, [[Moscow]], Russia<ref>RF MOS website www.mil.ru accessed 9 August 2012.</ref>
| coordinates = {{coord|55|43|40|N|37|35|22|E|type:landmark_region:RU|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates = {{coord|55|43|40|N|37|35|22|E|type:landmark_region:RU|display=inline,title}}
| preceding1 = Ministry of Defence of the Soviet Union (1946–1991)
| preceding1 = [[Ministry of Defense (Soviet Union)|Ministry of Defence of the Soviet Union]] (1946–1992)
| preceding2 = People's Commissariat of Defence of the Soviet Union (1934–1946)
| preceding2 = [[People's Commissariat of Defense of the Soviet Union]] (1934–1946)
| preceding3 = Ministry of War of the Russian Empire (1802–1917)
| preceding3 = [[People's Commissariat for Military and Naval Affairs]] (1923–1934)
| preceding4 = [[College of War]] (1717–1802)
| preceding4 = [[Council of People's Commissars on War and Navy Affairs (Soviet Russia)]] (1917–1923)
| preceding5 = [[Ministry of War of the Russian Empire]] (1802–1917)
| minister1_name = [[Army general (Russia)|General]] [[Sergei Shoigu]]
| preceding6 = [[College of War]] (1717–1802)
| minister1_name = [[Andrey Belousov]]
| minister1_pfo = [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]]
| minister1_pfo = [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]]
| dissolved =
| dissolved =
Line 28: Line 30:
}}
}}


The '''Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation''' ({{lang-ru|Министерство обороны Российской Федерации}}; '''MOD''') is the governing body of the [[Russian Armed Forces]]. The [[President of Russia]] is the [[Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation|Commander-in-Chief]] of the forces and directs the activity of the ministry. The [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]] exercises day-to-day administrative and operational authority over the forces.<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/acts/bank/9446/page/3 Федеральный закон от 31 мая 1996 г. № 61-ФЗ «Об обороне»] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180819010836/http://www.kremlin.ru/acts/bank/9446/page/3 |date=2018-08-19 }} See Article 13, §§ 1, 2.</ref> The [[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation|General Staff of the Armed Forces]] executes the instructions and orders of the president and the defence minister.
The '''Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation''' ({{langx|ru|Министерство обороны Российской Федерации}}; '''MOD''') is the governing body of the [[Russian Armed Forces]]. The [[President of Russia]] is the [[Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation|Commander-in-Chief]] of the forces and directs the activity of the ministry. The [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]] exercises day-to-day administrative and operational authority over the forces.<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/acts/bank/9446/page/3 Федеральный закон от 31 мая 1996 г. № 61-ФЗ «Об обороне»] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180819010836/http://www.kremlin.ru/acts/bank/9446/page/3 |date=2018-08-19 }} See Article 13, §§ 1, 2.</ref> The [[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation|General Staff of the Armed Forces]] executes the instructions and orders of the president and the defence minister.


The ministry is headquartered in the [[General Staff Building (Moscow)|General Staff building]], built in 1979–1987 on Arbatskaya Square, near [[Arbat Street]] in Moscow. Other buildings of the ministry are located throughout Moscow. The supreme body responsible for the ministry's management and supervision of the Armed Forces and the centralization of the Armed Forces' command is the [[National Defense Management Center]], located in the [[Main Building of the Ministry of Defense (Russia)|Main Building of the Ministry of Defense]], built in the 1940s on [[Frunzenskaya Embankment]].
The ministry is headquartered in the [[General Staff Building (Moscow)|General Staff building]], built-in 1979–1987 on Arbatskaya Square, near [[Arbat Street]] in Moscow. Other buildings of the ministry are located throughout Moscow. The supreme body responsible for the ministry's management and supervision of the Armed Forces and the centralization of the Armed Forces' command is the [[National Defense Management Center]], located in the [[Main Building of the Ministry of Defense (Russia)|Main Building of the Ministry of Defense]], built in the 1940s on [[Frunzenskaya Embankment]].


The current Minister of Defence is [[Army general (Russia)|Army General]] [[Sergei Shoigu]].
The current Minister of Defence is [[Andrey Belousov]] (since 14 May 2024).


==History==
==History==
{{see also|Ministry of War of the Russian Empire|Ministry of Defense (Soviet Union)}}
{{see also|Ministry of War of the Russian Empire|Ministry of Defense (Soviet Union)}}
{{Russian military}}
{{Russian military}}
[[File:Official portrait of Sergey Shoigu.jpg|thumb|Defence minister ''Army general'' [[Sergei Shoigu]] with shoulder boards]]
[[File:Meeting with military district commanders (2024-05-15) 01.jpg|thumb|275px|Defence Minister [[Andrey Belousov]] with military district commanders]]
[[File:The building of the Ministry of War 1817-1820 - panoramio.jpg|thumb|right|[[Lobanov-Rostovsky Palace]] in Saint Petersburg, former Defense Ministry building]]
[[File: The building of the Ministry of War 1817-1820 - panoramio.jpg|thumb|275px|right|[[Lobanov-Rostovsky Palace]] in Saint Petersburg, former Defence Ministry building]]
The U.S. [[Library of Congress Country Studies]]' volume for Russia said in July 1996 that:
The U.S. [[Library of Congress Country Studies]]' volume for Russia said in July 1996 that:


{{quote|[The] structure [...] does not imply [[Civilian control of the military|military subordination to civilian authority]] in the Western sense [...]. The historical tradition of military command is considerably different in Russia. The [[tsar]]s were educated as officers, and they regularly wore military uniforms and carried military rank. [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] always wore a military uniform, and he assumed the title [[Generalissimo of the Soviet Union|generalissimo]]. Even General Secretary [[Leonid Brezhnev|Leonid I. Brezhnev]] [...] appointed himself general of the army, and he encouraged portraits of himself in full uniform. By tradition dating back to the tsars, the minister of defense normally is a uniformed officer. The [[State Duma]] also seats a large number of [[member of parliament|deputies]] who are active-duty military officers—another tradition that began in the [[Imperial Russia|Russian imperial era]]. These combinations of military and civilian authority ensure that military concerns are considered at the highest levels of the Russian government.<ref>[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] Russia, [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ru0194) Command Structure] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921144324/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+ru0194%29 |date=2017-09-21 }}</ref>}}
{{quote|[The] structure [...] does not imply [[Civilian control of the military|military subordination to civilian authority]] in the Western sense [...]. The historical tradition of military command is considerably different in Russia. The [[tsar]]s were educated as officers, and they regularly wore military uniforms and carried military ranks. [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] always wore a military uniform, and he assumed the title [[Generalissimo of the Soviet Union|generalissimo]]. Even General Secretary [[Leonid Brezhnev|Leonid I. Brezhnev]] [...] appointed himself general of the army, and he encouraged portraits of himself in full uniform. By tradition dating back to the tsars, the minister of defence normally is a uniformed officer. The [[State Duma]] also seats a large number of [[member of parliament|deputies]] who are active-duty military officers—another tradition that began in the [[Imperial Russia|Russian imperial era]]. These combinations of military and civilian authority ensure that military concerns are considered at the highest levels of the Russian government.<ref>[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] Russia, [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ru0194) Command Structure] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921144324/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+ru0194%29 |date=2017-09-21 }}</ref>}}


In May 1992, [[President of Russia]] [[Boris Yeltsin]] appointed [[Army General (Soviet Union)|General of the Army]] [[Pavel Grachev]] to the post of Minister of Defence. At least partly for that reason, Yeltsin retained his defence minister despite intense criticism of Grachev's management of the [[First Chechen War]] and the Russian military establishment in general.
On 18 May 1992, [[President of Russia]] [[Boris Yeltsin]] appointed [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Pavel Grachev]] to the post of Minister of Defence. Despite intense criticism of Grachev's management of the [[First Chechen War]] and the Russian military establishment in general, Yeltsin retained Grachev till 18 June 1996. The new minister of defence became [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Igor Rodionov]], who subsequently was substituted by [[Marshal of the Russian Federation]] [[Igor Sergeyev]].


In March 2001, [[Sergei Ivanov]], previously secretary of the [[Security Council of Russia]], was appointed defence minister by President [[Vladimir Putin]], becoming Russia's first non-uniformed civilian defence minister.<ref>Peter Finn, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/15/AR2007021501526_pf.html Russian Leader Expands Powers of a Possible Successor] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018114031/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/15/AR2007021501526_pf.html |date=2017-10-18 }}, [[Washington Post]], 16 February 2007.</ref>
In March 2001, [[Sergei Ivanov]], previously secretary of the [[Security Council of Russia]], was appointed defence minister by President [[Vladimir Putin]], becoming Russia's first non-uniformed civilian defence minister.<ref>Peter Finn, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/15/AR2007021501526_pf.html Russian Leader Expands Powers of a Possible Successor] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018114031/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/15/AR2007021501526_pf.html |date=2017-10-18 }}, [[Washington Post]], 16 February 2007.</ref>
Putin called the personnel changes in Russia's security structures coinciding with Ivanov's appointment as defence minister "a step toward demilitarizing public life." Putin also stressed Ivanov's responsibility for overseeing military reform as defence minister. What Putin did not emphasise was Ivanov's long service within the [[KGB]] and [[Federal Security Service (Russia)|FSB]] and his then rank of General-Lieutenant within the FSB. Such military and security agency associated men are known as [[siloviki]].
Putin called the personnel changes in Russia's security structures coinciding with Ivanov's appointment as defence minister "a step toward demilitarizing public life." Putin also stressed Ivanov's responsibility for overseeing military reform as defence minister. What Putin did not emphasise was Ivanov's long service within the [[KGB]] and [[Federal Security Service (Russia)|FSB]] and his then rank of General-Lieutenant within the FSB. Such military and security agency-associated men are known as [[siloviki]].


As of 2002 there were four living [[Marshal of the Soviet Union|Marshals of the Soviet Union]]. Such men are automatically Advisors to the Defence Minister. The Marshals alive at that time were [[Viktor Kulikov]], [[Vasily Ivanovich Petrov|Vasily Petrov]], [[Sergei Sokolov (Marshal)|Sergei Sokolov]], a former Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, and [[Dmitri Yazov]]. Yazov was listed by the American analysts Scott and Scott in 2002 as a consultant to the (former 10th) Directorate for International Military Cooperation.<ref>Harriet F. Scott and William Scott, Russian Military Directory 2002, p. 341, citing DS2002-0802.</ref>
As of 2002, there were four living [[Marshal of the Soviet Union|Marshals of the Soviet Union]]. Such men are automatically Advisors to the Defence Minister. The Marshals alive at that time were [[Viktor Kulikov]], [[Vasily Ivanovich Petrov|Vasily Petrov]], [[Sergei Sokolov (Marshal)|Sergei Sokolov]], a former Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, and [[Dmitri Yazov]]. Yazov was listed by the American analysts Scott and Scott in 2002 as a consultant to the (formerly 10th) Directorate for International Military Cooperation.<ref>Harriet F. Scott and William Scott, Russian Military Directory 2002, p. 341, citing DS2002-0802.</ref>


Perhaps the first 'real' non-uniformed Defence Minister was [[Anatoliy Serdyukov]], appointed in February 2007. Serdyukov was a former Tax Minister with little siloviki or military associations beyond his two years' military service.
Perhaps the first 'real' non-uniformed Defence Minister was [[Anatoly Serdyukov]], appointed in February 2007. Serdyukov was a former Tax Minister with little siloviki or military associations beyond his two years of military service. Serdyukov launched the [[2008 Russian military reform|military reform in 2008]].

On 19 August 2010, Serdyukov appointed [[Tatyana Shevtsova]] as his deputy. As of that date, more than 50 women had been appointed by Serdyukov, and mainly in the tax accountant profession.<ref name="rferl1">{{cite news |title=Tax Officials Invade Russia's Defense Ministry |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/Tax_Officials_Invade_Russias_Defense_Ministry/2132465.html |access-date=2024-09-02}}</ref>

In 2012, he was substituted by [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Sergey Shoigu]], who held at that moment the position of the [[Ministry of Emergency Situations (Russia)|Minister of Civil Defence, Emergency Situations and Disaster Relief]].

In May 2024 simultaneous with the [[Fifth inauguration of Vladimir Putin]] on the 14th, [[Sergey Shoigu]] was released from duty and [[Purges in the Russian Ministry of Defense in 2024|several of his staff were investigated]] for corruption or other misdeeds: Yuri Vasilievich Kuznetsov, [[Timur Ivanov]], [[Ruslan Tsalikov]],<ref name="nw1">{{cite news |url=https://www.newsweek.com/shoigu-defense-resigantion-putin-russia-1900451 |title=Putin begins defense ministry purge amid nuclear secrets leak rumor |date=14 May 2024 }}</ref> as well as [[Vadim Shamarin]],<ref name="dw1">{{cite news |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSvHW6K7Z2U | title=Kremlin denies they are purging military generals as another is arrested &#124; DW News | date=23 May 2024 }}</ref> [[Ivan Ivanovich Popov]],<ref name="apn1">{{cite news |url=https://apnews.com/article/russia-military-official-arrested-593663db8ef68092cb1c50de792231d5 |title=Deputy Russian military chief of staff jailed for bribery in latest arrest of high defense official |date=23 May 2024 }}</ref> Vladimir Verteletsky,<ref name="ss1">{{cite news |url=https://www.stripes.com/theaters/europe/2024-05-23/russian-officials-arrested-corruption-probe-13953157.html |title=2 more Russian officials arrested in widening military corruption probe }}</ref> and [[Sukhrab Akhmedov]].<ref name="nw3">{{cite news |url=https://www.newsweek.com/russia-fires-general-troops-deadly-himars-strike-akhmedov-1904357 |title=Russia fires general who lined up troops ahead of deadly HIMARS strike |date=24 May 2024 }}</ref>

On 17 June 2024, it was noted that four deputy defence ministers, [[Nikolay Pankov (army officer)|Nikolay Pankov]], [[Ruslan Tsalikov]], [[Tatiana Shevtsova]] and [[Pavel Popov]], had been sacked for [[nepotism]] that had entered the Ministry. Russian energy minister [[Sergey Tsivilyov]]'s wife, [[Anna Tsivileva]], the daughter of a cousin of the President, was appointed deputy defence minister. Her responsibilities include improving social and housing support for military personnel. Leonid Gornin, previously the first deputy finance minister, was appointed as the first deputy defence minister. Other personnel changes included [[Oleg Savelyev]] and the son of former Prime Minister [[Mikhail Fradkov]]. [[Pavel Fradkov]] would oversee the management of property, land and construction relating to the military.<ref name="rtrs4">{{cite news |title=Putin extends defence ministry purge, hands job to a relative |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-clears-out-deputy-defence-ministers-appoints-his-relative-2024-06-17/ |access-date=2024-09-02}}</ref><ref name="tt1">{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/putin-cousin-daughter-deputy-defence-minister-anna-tsivileva-k50c2jb5c |title=Putin makes cousin's daughter deputy defence minister }}</ref> Other reports had Tsivileva as Putin's niece.<ref name="actr1">{{cite news |url=https://www.anews.com.tr/world/2024/06/17/putin-sacks-four-russian-deputy-defence-ministers-appoints-his-niece |title=Putin sacks four Russian deputy defence ministers, appoints his niece }}</ref>

On 18 July it was revealed that Lt Gen Shamarin had been formally dismissed from his post because he had accepted bribes from a supplier. He had been serving as deputy chief of the army’s general staff overseeing the signals corps and military communications.<ref name="bbc1">{{cite news |title=Top Russian general fired amid bribery allegations |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1we4qgd688o |access-date=2024-09-02}}</ref>

On 24 July the Deputy Chief of the Satellite Communications Center for Strategic Nuclear Missile Forces Andrei Torgashev was apparently victimized at his residence by a car bomb.<ref name="mt24">{{cite news |title=Turkish Police Arrest Man Suspected of Organizing Bomb Attack in Moscow |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/07/24/russian-military-officer-injured-in-moscow-car-explosion-reports-a85808}}</ref>


==Structure==
==Structure==
The Ministry of Defence is managed by a collegium chaired by the Defence Minister and including the deputy Defence Ministers, heads of Main Defence Ministry and General Staff Directorates, and the commanders of the Joint Strategic Commands/Military Districts, the three Services, and three branches, who together form the principal staff and advisory board of the Minister of Defence.
The Ministry of Defence is managed by a collegium chaired by the Defence Minister and including the deputy Defence Ministers, heads of the Main Defence Ministry and General Staff Directorates, the commanders of the Joint Strategic Commands/Military Districts, the three Services, and three branches, who together form the principal staff and advisory board of the Minister of Defence.

⚫
The executive body of the Ministry of Defence is the [[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation]], which is headed by the [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]]. U.S. expert [[William Odom]] said in 1998 that "the Soviet General Staff without the MoD is conceivable, but the MoD without the General Staff is not."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Odom |first1=William E. |title=The Collapse of the Soviet Military |date=1998 |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |location=New Haven |isbn=0-300-08271-1 |page=27}}</ref> Russian General Staff officers exercise command authority in their own right. In 1996 the General Staff included fifteen main directorates and an undetermined number of operating agencies. The staff is organized by functions, with each directorate and operating agency overseeing a functional area, generally indicated by the organization's title.

⚫
''Military Thought'' is the military-theoretical journal of the Ministry of Defence, and ''[[Krasnaya Zvezda]]'' is its daily newspaper.

===Structure in 2024===
Senior staff in 2024 included:<ref name="RF MOD">RF MOD website www.mil.ru accessed 18 August 2019.</ref>


;Minister of Defence:
⚫
The executive body of the Ministry of Defence is the [[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation]], which is headed by the [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]]. U.S. expert [[William Odom]] said in 1998 that 'the Soviet General Staff without the MoD is conceivable, but the MoD without the General Staff is not.'<ref>[[William Eldridge Odom]], 'The Collapse of the Soviet Military,' Yale University Press, 1998, {{ISBN|0-300-08271-1}}, p. 27.</ref> Russian General Staff officers exercise command authority in their own right. In 1996 the General Staff included fifteen main directorates and an undetermined number of operating agencies. The staff is organized by functions, with each directorate and operating agency overseeing a functional area, generally indicated by the organization's title.
* [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation]] – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Andrey Belousov]] (since 14 May 2024)


;First Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
⚫
''Military Thought'' is the military-theoretical journal of the Ministry of Defence, and [[Krasnaya Zvezda]] its daily newspaper.
* [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]] – First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Valery Gerasimov]] (since 9 November 2012)
* First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] {{ill|Leonid Vladimirovich Gornin|lt=Leonid Gornin|ru|Горнин, Леонид Владимирович}} (since 17 June 2024)
;Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Material-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[Lieutenant General]] {{ill|Andrey Mikhailovich Bulyga|lt=Andrey Bulyga|ru|Булыга, Андрей Михайлович}} (since 11 March 2024)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Financial Support for the Armed Forces) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Anna Tsivilyova]] (since 17 June 2024)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Supervisor of the Apparatus of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Oleg Savelyev]] (since 20 May 2024)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for the Development of the Technical Basis for the Management System and Information Technology) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Pavel Fradkov]] (since 17 June 2024)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising International Military and Military-Technical Cooperation) – [[Colonel General]] [[Alexander Fomin]] (since 31 January 2017)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Military-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] {{ill|Aleksey Yuryevich Krivoruchko|lt=Aleksey Krivoruchko|ru|Криворучко, Алексей Юрьевич}} (since 13 June 2018)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Combat Training) – [[Colonel General]] [[Yunus-bek Yevkurov]] (since 8 July 2019)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Chief of the [[Main Military-Political Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces|Main Directorate for Political-Military Affairs of the Russian Armed Forces]] – [[Colonel general]] [[Viktor Goremykin]] (since 28 July 2022)


===Structure in 2021===
===Structure in 2021===
Senior staff in 2021 included:<ref name="RF MOD">RF MOD website www.mil.ru accessed 18 August 2019.</ref>
Senior staff in 2021 included:<ref name="RF MOD">RF MOD website www.mil.ru accessed 18 August 2019.</ref>


Minister of Defence:
;Minister of Defence:
* Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[General of the Army (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Sergei Shoigu]] (since 6 November 2012)
* Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Sergei Shoigu]] (since 6 November 2012)


First Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
;First Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
* [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]] – First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – General of the Army [[Valery Gerasimov]] (since 9 November 2012)
* [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]] – First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Valery Gerasimov]] (since 9 November 2012)
* First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Active State Advisor of the Russian Federation, 1st Class [[Ruslan Tsalikov]] (since 24 December 2015)
* First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Ruslan Tsalikov]] (since 24 December 2015)


Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
;Deputy Minister(s) of Defence:
* State Secretary – Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – General of the Army (Retired) [[Nikolay Pankov (army officer)|Nikolay Pankov]] (since 13 September 2005)
* State Secretary – Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] and [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army of reserve]] [[Nikolay Pankov (army officer)|Nikolay Pankov]] (since 13 September 2005)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Material-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[Colonel General]] [[Mikhail Mizintsev]] (since 24 September 2022)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Material-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[Colonel General]] [[Mikhail Mizintsev]] (since 24 September 2022)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Financial Support for the Armed Forces) – Active State Advisor of the Russian Federation, 1st Class [[Tatiana Shevtsova]] (since 4 August 2010)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Financial Support for the Armed Forces) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Tatiana Shevtsova]] (since 4 August 2010)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Supervisor of the Apparatus of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation – Colonel General [[Yuriy Sadovenko]] (since 7 January 2013)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Supervisor of the Apparatus of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation – [[Colonel General]] [[Yuriy Sadovenko]] (since 7 January 2013)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for the Development of the Technical Basis for the Management System and Information Technology) – General of the Army [[Pavel Popov]] (since 7 November 2013)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for the Development of the Technical Basis for the Management System and Information Technology) – [[Army general (Russia)|General of the Army]] [[Pavel Popov]] (since 7 November 2013)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Property Management, Quartering of Troops (Forces), Housing, and Medical Support for the Armed Forces) – Active State Advisor of the Russian Federation, 2nd Class [[Timur Ivanov]] (since 23 May 2016)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Property Management, Quartering of Troops (Forces), Housing, and Medical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] [[Timur Ivanov]] (since 23 May 2016)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising International Military and Military-Technical Cooperation) – Colonel General [[Alexander Fomin]] (since 31 January 2017)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising International Military and Military-Technical Cooperation) – [[Colonel General]] [[Alexander Fomin]] (since 31 January 2017)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Military-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation, 1st Class {{ill|Aleksey Yuryevich Krivoruchko|lt=Aleksey Krivoruchko|ru|Криворучко, Алексей Юрьевич}} (since 13 June 2018)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Organising Military-Technical Support for the Armed Forces) – [[1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation]] {{ill|Aleksey Yuryevich Krivoruchko|lt=Aleksey Krivoruchko|ru|Криворучко, Алексей Юрьевич}} (since 13 June 2018)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Combat Training) – Colonel General [[Yunus-Bek Yevkurov]] (since 8 July 2019)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation (Responsible for Combat Training) – [[Colonel General]] [[Yunus-Bek Yevkurov]] (since 8 July 2019)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Chief of the [[Main Military-Political Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces|Main Directorate for Political-Military Affairs of the Russian Armed Forces]] – Colonel General {{ill|Viktor Petrovich Goremykin|lt=Viktor Goremykin|ru|Горемыкин, Виктор Петрович}} (since 28 July 2022)
* Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation – Chief of the [[Main Military-Political Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces|Main Directorate for Political-Military Affairs of the Russian Armed Forces]] – [[Colonel general]] {{ill|Viktor Petrovich Goremykin|lt=Viktor Goremykin|ru|Горемыкин, Виктор Петрович}} (since 28 July 2022)


===Organization in 2012===
Entities directly subordinated to the Minister of Defence in August 2012 included:<ref name="RF MOD"/>
Entities directly subordinated to the Minister of Defence in August 2012 included:<ref name="RF MOD"/>
{{col-begin}}
{{col-begin}}
Line 124: Line 158:
*[[12 Chief Directorate|12th Main Directorate of the MOD]] (nuclear weapons)
*[[12 Chief Directorate|12th Main Directorate of the MOD]] (nuclear weapons)
*16th Directorate of the MOD (function unclear)
*16th Directorate of the MOD (function unclear)
*Hydrometrological Service of the Armed Forces
*Hydrometeorological Service of the Armed Forces
*Military Inspectorate
*Military Inspectorate
*Directorate of Information and Public Relations
*Directorate of Information and Public Relations
Line 133: Line 167:
*All-Russian Centre for Retraining Officers
*All-Russian Centre for Retraining Officers
*[[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation]]
*[[General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation]]
**directorates, departments, etc.
**Directorates, departments, etc.
**[[Russian Ground Forces]]
**[[Russian Ground Forces]]
**[[Russian Air Force]]
**[[Russian Air Force]]
Line 168: Line 202:
**Main Quarters Exploitation Directorate
**Main Quarters Exploitation Directorate
**other Directorates, departments etc.
**other Directorates, departments etc.
*[[Lyubov Kudelina]], Deputy Minister of Defence for Financial-Economic Work
*Lyubov Kudelina
, Deputy Minister of Defence for Financial-Economic Work
**Financial-Economic Section of the MOD
**Financial-Economic Section of the MOD
**Directorate of Military-Economic Analysis and Expertise
**Directorate of Military-Economic Analysis and Expertise
Line 197: Line 232:
[[Category:Defence ministries|Russia]]
[[Category:Defence ministries|Russia]]
[[Category:Military of Russia]]
[[Category:Military of Russia]]
[[Category:Ministries established in 1717|Defence, Ministry of]]
[[Category:Ministries established in 1992|Defence, Ministry of]]
[[Category:Russian and Soviet military-related lists]]
[[Category:Russian and Soviet military-related lists]]
[[Category:1717 establishments in Russia]]
[[Category:1992 establishments in Russia]]

Latest revision as of 09:48, 17 December 2024

Ministry of Defence of
the Russian Federation
Министерство обороны Российской Федерации
Ministry emblem
Ministry flag

The building of the National Defense Management Center on Frunzenskaya Embankment (house No. 22) in Moscow, the ministry headquarters
Agency overview
Formed16 March 1992 (first in 1717 as College of War)
Preceding agencies
JurisdictionPresident of Russia
HeadquartersZnamenka 19, Moscow, Russia[1]
55°43′40″N 37°35′22″E / 55.72778°N 37.58944°E / 55.72778; 37.58944
Annual budgetUS$69.3 billion (2014)
Minister responsible
Child agency
  • Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation
    Federal Service for Technical and Export Control
    Federal Service for Defence Contracts
    Federal Agency for Special Construction
    Federal Agency for the supply of arms, military and special equipment and material supplies
Websiteeng.mil.ru

The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation (Russian: Министерство обороны Российской Федерации; MOD) is the governing body of the Russian Armed Forces. The President of Russia is the Commander-in-Chief of the forces and directs the activity of the ministry. The Minister of Defence exercises day-to-day administrative and operational authority over the forces.[2] The General Staff of the Armed Forces executes the instructions and orders of the president and the defence minister.

The ministry is headquartered in the General Staff building, built-in 1979–1987 on Arbatskaya Square, near Arbat Street in Moscow. Other buildings of the ministry are located throughout Moscow. The supreme body responsible for the ministry's management and supervision of the Armed Forces and the centralization of the Armed Forces' command is the National Defense Management Center, located in the Main Building of the Ministry of Defense, built in the 1940s on Frunzenskaya Embankment.

The current Minister of Defence is Andrey Belousov (since 14 May 2024).

History

[edit]
See also: Ministry of War of the Russian Empire and Ministry of Defense (Soviet Union)
Russian Armed Forces
Staff
Services (vid)
Independent troops (rod)
Special operations force (sof)
Other troops
Military districts
History of the Russian military
Defence Minister Andrey Belousov with military district commanders
Lobanov-Rostovsky Palace in Saint Petersburg, former Defence Ministry building

The U.S. Library of Congress Country Studies' volume for Russia said in July 1996 that:

[The] structure [...] does not imply military subordination to civilian authority in the Western sense [...]. The historical tradition of military command is considerably different in Russia. The tsars were educated as officers, and they regularly wore military uniforms and carried military ranks. Stalin always wore a military uniform, and he assumed the title generalissimo. Even General Secretary Leonid I. Brezhnev [...] appointed himself general of the army, and he encouraged portraits of himself in full uniform. By tradition dating back to the tsars, the minister of defence normally is a uniformed officer. The State Duma also seats a large number of deputies who are active-duty military officers—another tradition that began in the Russian imperial era. These combinations of military and civilian authority ensure that military concerns are considered at the highest levels of the Russian government.[3]

On 18 May 1992, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin appointed General of the Army Pavel Grachev to the post of Minister of Defence. Despite intense criticism of Grachev's management of the First Chechen War and the Russian military establishment in general, Yeltsin retained Grachev till 18 June 1996. The new minister of defence became General of the Army Igor Rodionov, who subsequently was substituted by Marshal of the Russian Federation Igor Sergeyev.

In March 2001, Sergei Ivanov, previously secretary of the Security Council of Russia, was appointed defence minister by President Vladimir Putin, becoming Russia's first non-uniformed civilian defence minister.[4] Putin called the personnel changes in Russia's security structures coinciding with Ivanov's appointment as defence minister "a step toward demilitarizing public life." Putin also stressed Ivanov's responsibility for overseeing military reform as defence minister. What Putin did not emphasise was Ivanov's long service within the KGB and FSB and his then rank of General-Lieutenant within the FSB. Such military and security agency-associated men are known as siloviki.

As of 2002, there were four living Marshals of the Soviet Union. Such men are automatically Advisors to the Defence Minister. The Marshals alive at that time were Viktor Kulikov, Vasily Petrov, Sergei Sokolov, a former Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, and Dmitri Yazov. Yazov was listed by the American analysts Scott and Scott in 2002 as a consultant to the (formerly 10th) Directorate for International Military Cooperation.[5]

Perhaps the first 'real' non-uniformed Defence Minister was Anatoly Serdyukov, appointed in February 2007. Serdyukov was a former Tax Minister with little siloviki or military associations beyond his two years of military service. Serdyukov launched the military reform in 2008.

On 19 August 2010, Serdyukov appointed Tatyana Shevtsova as his deputy. As of that date, more than 50 women had been appointed by Serdyukov, and mainly in the tax accountant profession.[6]

In 2012, he was substituted by General of the Army Sergey Shoigu, who held at that moment the position of the Minister of Civil Defence, Emergency Situations and Disaster Relief.

In May 2024 simultaneous with the Fifth inauguration of Vladimir Putin on the 14th, Sergey Shoigu was released from duty and several of his staff were investigated for corruption or other misdeeds: Yuri Vasilievich Kuznetsov, Timur Ivanov, Ruslan Tsalikov,[7] as well as Vadim Shamarin,[8] Ivan Ivanovich Popov,[9] Vladimir Verteletsky,[10] and Sukhrab Akhmedov.[11]

On 17 June 2024, it was noted that four deputy defence ministers, Nikolay Pankov, Ruslan Tsalikov, Tatiana Shevtsova and Pavel Popov, had been sacked for nepotism that had entered the Ministry. Russian energy minister Sergey Tsivilyov's wife, Anna Tsivileva, the daughter of a cousin of the President, was appointed deputy defence minister. Her responsibilities include improving social and housing support for military personnel. Leonid Gornin, previously the first deputy finance minister, was appointed as the first deputy defence minister. Other personnel changes included Oleg Savelyev and the son of former Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov. Pavel Fradkov would oversee the management of property, land and construction relating to the military.[12][13] Other reports had Tsivileva as Putin's niece.[14]

On 18 July it was revealed that Lt Gen Shamarin had been formally dismissed from his post because he had accepted bribes from a supplier. He had been serving as deputy chief of the army’s general staff overseeing the signals corps and military communications.[15]

On 24 July the Deputy Chief of the Satellite Communications Center for Strategic Nuclear Missile Forces Andrei Torgashev was apparently victimized at his residence by a car bomb.[16]

Structure

[edit]

The Ministry of Defence is managed by a collegium chaired by the Defence Minister and including the deputy Defence Ministers, heads of the Main Defence Ministry and General Staff Directorates, the commanders of the Joint Strategic Commands/Military Districts, the three Services, and three branches, who together form the principal staff and advisory board of the Minister of Defence.

The executive body of the Ministry of Defence is the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, which is headed by the Chief of the General Staff. U.S. expert William Odom said in 1998 that "the Soviet General Staff without the MoD is conceivable, but the MoD without the General Staff is not."[17] Russian General Staff officers exercise command authority in their own right. In 1996 the General Staff included fifteen main directorates and an undetermined number of operating agencies. The staff is organized by functions, with each directorate and operating agency overseeing a functional area, generally indicated by the organization's title.

Military Thought is the military-theoretical journal of the Ministry of Defence, and Krasnaya Zvezda is its daily newspaper.

Structure in 2024

[edit]

Senior staff in 2024 included:[18]

Minister of Defence
First Deputy Minister(s) of Defence
Deputy Minister(s) of Defence

Structure in 2021

[edit]

Senior staff in 2021 included:[18]

Minister of Defence
First Deputy Minister(s) of Defence
Deputy Minister(s) of Defence

Organization in 2012

[edit]

Entities directly subordinated to the Minister of Defence in August 2012 included:[18]

  • MOD Press Service and Information Directorate
  • MOD Physical Training Directorate
  • MOD Financial Auditing Inspectorate
  • MOD Main Military Medical Directorate
  • MOD State Order Placement Department
  • MOD Property Relations Department
  • Expert Center of the MOD Staff
  • MOD Administration Directorate
  • MOD State Defence Order Facilitation Department
  • MOD Department of the State Customer for Capital Construction
  • MOD State Architectural-Construction Oversight Department
  • MOD Sanatoria-resort Support Department
  • MOD Housekeeping Directorate
  • MOD State Review/Study Group
  • MOD Educational Department
  • MOD Legal Department
  • MOD Organizational-inspection Department
  • MOD Personnel Inspectorate
  • MOD Military Inspectorate
  • MOD State Technical Oversight Directorate
  • MOD Aviation Flight Safety Service
  • MOD Nuclear and Radiation Safety Oversight Directorate
  • MOD Autotransport Directorate
  • MOD Staff Protocol Department
  • MOD Armed Force Weapons Turnover Oversight Service
  • MOD Main Military Police Directorate

The Office of Inspectors General of the Ministry of Defence was established in 2008, consisting of around thirty retired senior officers. The main task of the office is "to promote the organization of combat and operational training of troops, the construction and further development of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the development of the theory and history of military art, and the education of personnel."[19] It is the successor to the Soviet Armed Forces's Group of Inspectors General, which was dissolved in 1992.[19]

Outline structure 2004

[edit]

An outline structure of the Ministry of Defence includes the groupings below, but this structure was in transition when it was recorded in 2004, with several deputy minister posts being abolished:[20]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ RF MOS website www.mil.ru accessed 9 August 2012.
  2. ^ Федеральный закон от 31 мая 1996 г. № 61-ФЗ «Об обороне» Archived 2018-08-19 at the Wayback Machine See Article 13, §§ 1, 2.
  3. ^ Library of Congress Country Studies Russia, Command Structure Archived 2017-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Peter Finn, Russian Leader Expands Powers of a Possible Successor Archived 2017-10-18 at the Wayback Machine, Washington Post, 16 February 2007.
  5. ^ Harriet F. Scott and William Scott, Russian Military Directory 2002, p. 341, citing DS2002-0802.
  6. ^ "Tax Officials Invade Russia's Defense Ministry". Retrieved 2024-09-02.
  7. ^ "Putin begins defense ministry purge amid nuclear secrets leak rumor". 14 May 2024.
  8. ^ "Kremlin denies they are purging military generals as another is arrested | DW News". 23 May 2024.
  9. ^ "Deputy Russian military chief of staff jailed for bribery in latest arrest of high defense official". 23 May 2024.
  10. ^ "2 more Russian officials arrested in widening military corruption probe".
  11. ^ "Russia fires general who lined up troops ahead of deadly HIMARS strike". 24 May 2024.
  12. ^ "Putin extends defence ministry purge, hands job to a relative". Retrieved 2024-09-02.
  13. ^ "Putin makes cousin's daughter deputy defence minister".
  14. ^ "Putin sacks four Russian deputy defence ministers, appoints his niece".
  15. ^ "Top Russian general fired amid bribery allegations". Retrieved 2024-09-02.
  16. ^ "Turkish Police Arrest Man Suspected of Organizing Bomb Attack in Moscow".
  17. ^ Odom, William E. (1998). The Collapse of the Soviet Military. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 27. ISBN 0-300-08271-1.
  18. ^ a b c RF MOD website www.mil.ru accessed 18 August 2019.
  19. ^ a b Misyura, Vyacheslav (12 February 2018). "Управлению генеральных инспекторов Минобороны России — 60 лет!" (in Russian). Russian Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  20. ^ H.F. Scott & William F. Scott, Russian Military Directory 2004, pp. 61–82, 97–116.
  21. ^ State Secretary, Deputy Minister of Defence Archived 2008-04-11 at the Wayback Machine, Russian Ministry of Defence, accessed May 2008.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ministry of Defence of Russia.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Ministry_of_Defence_(Russia)&oldid=1263560395"