After 1945, there were essentially no reconnaissance and sabotage units in the army, because some of them were reduced and attached to other military formations, and some were disbanded. But they quickly realized that special forces groups are the most effective way to deal with the impending nuclear threat from NATO. Therefore, after a thorough study and generalization of the experience accumulated during the war, in 1950 it was decided to create the first special forces units in the Soviet Union. As of the beginning of May 1951, 46 companies were created, each of which had 120 people. All of them were subordinate to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Army General Staff.

Excursion to the Russian special forces

Those who think that the idea of ​​creating special forces is a thing of the recent past are mistaken. Formations with similar goals arose in Russia a long time ago.
Russian military leaders Pyotr Panin, Alexander Suvorov and Mikhail Kutuzov already in the 18th century raised the issue of creating special military units.
They arose in 1764 and were called chasseurs.
At the end of the 18th century, Catherine II initiated the rotation of the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks to the Bug and then to the Kuban, where the tactics of the “jaegers” came in handy - military operations in the highlands, ambushes, reconnaissance, raids.
The motto of the units is “Fox tail, wolf mouth”, and the training was reminiscent of modern warfare, a combination of undercover and power intelligence.
In 1797, Emperor Paul I introduced a new Charter, developed in the likeness of the charter of the Prussian army.
1811 was marked by the creation of OKVS - a separate corps of internal guards, which was engaged in the protection or restoration of order within the state.
Alexander I took care of the creation of mobile cavalry gendarmes of rapid reaction in 1817.
In the war of 1812, the Russian army gained tremendous experience, which was widely used later.
In 1826, the influence of the Imperial Chancellery increased.
In 1842, battalions of scouts were created from the Cossack battalions, in whose subsequent combat activities many generations of the future special forces were trained.
In 1903, the Intelligence Department of the General Staff was created. A year later - in all military districts.
In 1905, the influence of the tsarist Okhrana was growing, and formations were created on the basis of the police, the goals and objectives of which resemble the mission of today's OMON.
In 1917, the Bolsheviks created the People's Commissariat for Military Affairs - the Main Directorate of the General Staff - GUGSH.
In 1918, military intelligence was created. In the same year, ChONs were created - special-purpose units subordinate to the Cheka - to fight all kinds of rebels and Asian Basmachi.
In the 1930s, airborne troops and sabotage units were created in the Red Army.

History milestones

The tasks facing the new formation were serious: organizing and conducting reconnaissance, destroying any means of nuclear attack, identifying military formations and conducting special missions behind enemy lines, organizing and conducting sabotage actions, creating insurgent (partisan) detachments behind enemy lines, combating terrorism, searching for and neutralization of saboteurs. Other tasks include interfering with communications, disrupting power supplies, eliminating transport hubs, and bringing chaos to the country's military and government administration. Most of the tasks sound at least fantastic, but the GRU special forces could well cope with them: they had at their disposal the appropriate technical means and weapons, including portable nuclear mines.

The training of special forces militants was characterized by high intensity and was carried out using individual programs. For every 3-4 soldiers, 1 officer was assigned, who watched his pupils day and night. And the officers themselves were trained according to such a rich program that after several years of training, each of them could independently replace an entire combined arms unit.

Needless to say, the special forces were classified more than the nuclear developments of the USSR. At least, everyone knew about the presence of nuclear missiles, bombers with nuclear warheads and nuclear submarines, and not every marshal and general knew about the GRU special forces.

Also, one of the tasks of the special forces was the elimination of prominent figures of the enemy countries, but then this task was canceled. (If not classified even deeper).
The first manual for special forces - "Instructions for the combat use of special forces and subunits" was written by Pavel Golitsin, the ex-chief of intelligence of the Belarusian partisan brigade "Chekist".

But not everything was so good. Already in 1953, the Armed Forces began to be reduced and 35 companies were reduced. There are only eleven special special forces companies (ORSpN) left. It took four whole years for army special forces to improve their shaky positions after such a blow, and only in 1957 were 5 separate special forces battalions created, which in 1962, along with the remnants of old companies, were joined by 10 special forces brigades. They were designed for peacetime and wartime. According to the states of peacetime, the brigade did not have more than 200-300 fighters; in the military, the ObrSpNb consisted of no less than 1,700 soldiers and officers. By the beginning of 1963, the USSR special forces included: 10 cadre brigades, 5 separate battalions, 12 separate companies in the Leningrad, Baltic, Belorussian, Carpathian, Kiev, Odessa, Transcaucasian, Moscow, Turkestan, Far Eastern military districts.

In the same year, the GRU conducted the first major exercises, but, despite the excellent results of training fighters, already in 1964, after a new reorganization, the special forces lost 3 battalions and 6 companies, and 6 companies, 2 battalions and 10 brigades remained in the army special forces. Separately, it should be said about the units, which, in addition to the standard training of the special forces, trained for special tasks. So, the soldiers of the 99th company, which was stationed in the Arkhangelsk military district, were oriented to operations in the cold conditions of the Arctic, and the soldiers of the 227th special forces, located in the North Caucasian military district, trained for survival in mountainous terrain. Further intensification of work on the creation of shock groups of special forces began only at the end of the 60s.

Personnel training

In 1968, on the basis of the Ryazan Airborne School, they began to train professional special forces intelligence officers. It was then that the legendary 9th company appeared. The 9th company held its last graduation in 1981, then it was disbanded. Also, special forces officers were trained at the Frunze Military Academy and at the intelligence department of the Kiev VOKU, but in their specialization they were more like military intelligence officers. In 1970, they formed a training company, then a battalion, and then a regiment stationed in the Pskov region.

When in 1985 (6 years after the start of the war!) it became clear that the soldiers before Afghanistan needed special training, a training regiment was also created in Uzbek Chirchik.

Operations abroad

The first major foreign operation of special forces falls on 1968, after which he no longer had to prove his worth. It was in this year that the countries united by the Warsaw Pact sent their troops to Czechoslovakia. To begin with, our plane requested an emergency landing from the country's capital due to engine failure. Within a few minutes, our special forces captured the airport, to which they very soon transferred an airborne division. At this time, the units that had previously arrived in Prague took control of “train stations, newspapers and telegraph”, that is, all key positions. After seizing the government building, the commandos took the country's leadership to Moscow.

In total, the army special forces sent their troops to two dozen countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa. They also had to face the American commandos. Only many years later did the Americans find out who really defeated their elite units in 1970 in the Vietnamese Sean Tay, in 1978 in Angola. Often their special services did not even know about the operations carried out by our fighters. Here is a vivid illustration.

In 1968, 9 of our fighters made a classic raid on a top-secret helicopter camp in Cambodia, located 30 kilometers from the Vietnamese border. The American military threw their reconnaissance and sabotage groups from it into Vietnam, from here they flew out in search of their downed pilots. The camp was guarded by 2 light helicopters, 8-10 heavy transport helicopters and 4 Super Cobra helicopters. A new modification of the "turntable" of fire support with the presence of guided missiles and the latest targeting systems on board was the goal of our paratroopers. It took our special forces only 25 minutes to steal one and destroy the three remaining helicopters under the noses of the American commandos.

Afghan company

There is still very little free information about the combat operations of the Soviet special forces in Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Nicaragua, Cuba and Vietnam.

Much more data on the ten-year Afghan war. Its beginning was laid by the most difficult special operation to eliminate the ruler Hafizuly Amin. Until now, historians consider the capture of the fortress of Amin and its destruction a pure adventure, however, it was a success. In addition to the KGB special forces “Grom” and “Zenith”, the future “Alpha” and “Vympel”, the GRU special forces took part in the operation. About six months before the momentous assault, a Muslim battalion was created, the so-called “Musbat” or the 154th separate special forces detachment, which included GRU fighters from among Soviet Muslims. It was staffed by Tajiks, Uzbeks and Turkmens who had served in tank and motorized rifle units. Most of them spoke Farsi. Shortly before the assault, this detachment was secretly introduced into the palace guards. The assault itself lasted only 40 minutes. 7 special forces soldiers were killed in the palace. This unit, apart from a short respite after this operation, until 1984 conducted combat operations according to the tactics of special forces, staged raids and ambushes, and carried out reconnaissance in Afghanistan.

At the end of 1983, the army began to create a border zone "Veil", along the entire length of Jalalabad - Ghazni - Kandahar. With its help, it was planned to block two hundred caravan routes, by which the rebels delivered ammunition from Pakistan. But for such a grandiose plan in Afghanistan there were not enough special forces, so in 1984 the 177th special forces detachment was transferred here, followed by the 154th special forces. In total, the personnel of the special forces of the GRU General Staff in Afghanistan amounted to about 1,400 people. Since this also seemed not enough, the formation of additional special-purpose military formations began in the USSR.

Among the memorable operations can be called many. For example, in January 1984, company 177, reinforced by a tank platoon and two companies of the Afghan army, was supposed to find and capture a caravan in the area of ​​the village of Vakha, where, according to information, the weapons and ammunition of dushmans were supposed to arrive. However, the enemy was not detected, and in the afternoon our detachment was surrounded. And after a hard battle, with the support of aviation and artillery, the detachment left the danger zone.

In 1989, the structure of the 15th and 22nd Special Forces brigades was radically changed. Armored military equipment, grenade launchers, communications controls, including space ones, were withdrawn from the brigades as inappropriate for their tasks - that is, anti-sabotage and military intelligence. The 10-year standoff of the special forces against the enemy was recognized as an "atypical use case" ...

However, in 1990, when the 15th brigade arrived in Baku to fight the bandit formations of the Popular Front of the country, the equipment was returned to them. Then the special forces made 37 flights by Il-76 VTA aircraft and delivered more than 20 units of armored military equipment, vehicles, and communications equipment from Tashkent. The presence of soldiers and officers who were not verbally aware of the fight against saboteurs allowed the brigade, which at that time was in the department of the KGB of the USSR, to fulfill all the tasks assigned. And upon returning home, despite numerous requests from the command of the unit, all military equipment and means of communication were simply confiscated.

Chechen company

In the first Chechen 1994-1996. Russian special forces have been present in Chechnya since the introduction of troops by separate and consolidated detachments. At first, it was used only in intelligence. Due to the poor preparation of the composition of the ground units, the special forces soldiers took part in assault groups, as happened in Grozny. The year 1995 brought very high losses in the special forces detachments - the battles of this year were the most tragic in the entire history of the special forces of Russia and the USSR.
But in spite of everything, the special forces began to work according to their traditional tactics, especially standing out in ambush actions. After the signing of the Khasavyurt agreement, after which the North Caucasus temporarily entered a period of shaky peace, it was clear that the conflict had not yet been resolved. Therefore, with the beginning of the fighting in Dagestan in confrontations with the armed groups of militants, international and Chechen terrorists, the task of the special forces was to provide the troops with intelligence data on the fortifications and positions of the Wahhabis. I had to fight with "old friends" in the Afghan company from among the Arab, Pakistani and Turkish mercenaries and instructors. Ours could recognize many of them by their inherent features of mining, avoiding persecution, radio exchange, and choosing places for an ambush. The GRU special forces were in first place among other units in terms of combat training and the fulfillment of assigned tasks, acting 10 times more efficiently than the rest.

Separate and consolidated detachments were from the brigades of the Siberian, Moscow, Ural, Trans-Baikal, Far Eastern, North Caucasian military districts.

In the spring of 1995, there were no detachments left in Chechnya, the last - a separate special forces detachment assigned to the North Caucasian Military District, returned to Russia in the fall of 1996.

Troubled times

The years that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union were the most difficult for the army in general and the special forces in particular. In a series of reforms and reorganizations, the army special forces suffered such damage that they did not suffer even during the wars in Afghanistan and Chechnya. After the war in Afghanistan, some brigades returned to their former places of deployment, some were disbanded. From time to time, parts of the brigades were thrown into places of armed clashes with various illegal formations. Thus, the 173rd detachment participated in the elimination of unrest in Baku and Ossetia, when it was necessary to intervene in the Ossetian-Ingush conflict, fought on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The GRU detachments of the Moscow Military District supported the constitutional order in Tajikistan. Soldiers of the 12th Special Forces Brigade of the Transcaucasian Military District fought in Tbilisi and Azerbaijan, then, since 1991, in Nagorno-Karabakh and North Ossetia. The 4th brigade (Estonia) was disbanded in 1992, before that a special forces brigade was withdrawn from the Soviet Group of Forces in Germany. The Pechersk Special Forces Training Regiment was also disbanded.

After the collapse of the Union, the 8th, 9th and 10th special forces brigades became part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and here the 8th was reorganized and turned into the 1st airborne regiment, the other two were disbanded. Belarus got the 5th special forces brigade, Uzbekistan - the 15th special forces brigade, the 459th special forces company, one training regiment.

So how many units of the GRU special forces are there today?

It is not possible to find out up to the end this question. Partly due to the secrecy of information, partly due to the constant reform of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation - in other words, reductions. But if we analyze the available information, we can calculate that today there are at least 9 special forces brigades and two battalions "West" and "East". There are a number of military formations whose fighters are identical to the one that was in the special forces. Although it is not a fact that these units are part of the GRU system - they may well end up in the department of the 45th separate reconnaissance regiment of the Airborne Forces, individual reconnaissance units, the Navy, GUIN, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the FSB structures.

Currently, the official name is the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia (GU GSh).

The GRU is subordinate to the Chief of the General Staff and the Minister of Defense, and is engaged in all types of intelligence in the interests of the Armed Forces - undercover, space, electronic.

The structure and strength of the GRU is a state secret. Priority in the GRU is given to undercover work, obtaining secret materials, foreign samples of modern weapons. Military intelligence residencies are significantly inferior to the residencies of the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation in terms of numbers and amounts of funding, while they act more strictly and purposefully.

CREATION
Created in 1918 by order of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Field Headquarters of the Red Army on the basis of the department, whose functions included coordinating the efforts of the intelligence agencies of the Red Army units and preparing intelligence information for the General Staff of the Red Army. The first official name was the Registration Directorate of the Field Headquarters of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RUPShKA).

GRU special forces in Afghanistan in 1988. Photo by Mikhail Evstafiev

In 1950, the GRU special forces were created (one brigade for each military district or fleet and a brigade of central subordination). The main task of these units at the first stage was to fight the main enemy - the NATO countries that possessed mobile nuclear weapons. GRU special forces units played a huge role in the Afghan war, in operations on the territory of the Chechen Republic.

HEADQUARTERS
The headquarters of the GRU is located in Moscow, on Khoroshevsky highway, in the Khodynka field area. The construction of the headquarters, which is an eight-story complex with a total area of ​​​​about 70 thousand m3, inside which there is a situation center, a command post, a sports complex and a swimming pool, was completed in the fall of 2006. The construction cost amounted to 9.5 billion rubles

"Sovinformsputnik"
CJSC Sovinformsputnik Founded in 1991. Number of employees is 107. Sovinformsputnik is an organization of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff, whose task is to sell unclassified images taken by GRU satellites. She became famous in April 2000, when American journalists discovered among the images distributed by Sovinformsputnik photos of a top-secret US military base, also known as Base 51.

GRU HEADS
Semyon Ivanovich Aralov (1918-1919)
Drabkin, Yakov Davidovich (1919, June-December)
Georgy Leonidovich Pyatakov (1920, January-February)
Vladimir Khristianovich Aussem (1920, February-June)
Jan Davydovich Lenzman (1920-1921)
Arvid Yanovich Zeibot (1921-1924)
Yan Karlovich Berzin (1924-1935)
Semyon Petrovich Uritsky (1935-1937)
Yan Karlovich Berzin (1937)
Semyon Grigorievich Gendin (acting September 1937 - October 1938)
Alexander Grigoryevich Orlov (acting October 1938-1939)
Ivan Iosifovich Proskurov (1939-1940)
Philip Ivanovich Golikov (1940-1941)
Alexey Pavlovich Panfilov (1941-1942)
Ivan Ivanovich Ilyichev (1942-1945)
Fyodor Fedotovich Kuznetsov (1945-1947)
Nikolai Mikhailovich Trusov (1947-1949)
Matvey Vasilyevich Zakharov (1949-1952)
Mikhail Alekseevich Shalin (1952-1956)
Sergey Matveyevich Shtemenko (1956-1957)
Mikhail Alekseevich Shalin (1957-1958)
Ivan Aleksandrovich Serov (1958-1963)
Pyotr Ivanovich Ivashutin (1963-1986)
Vladlen Mikhailovich Mikhailov (1986-1991)
Evgeny Leonidovich Timokhin (1991-1992)
Fedor Ivanovich Ladygin (1992-1997)
Valentin Vladimirovich Korabelnikov (1997-)

GRU structure

Throughout the history of its existence, the structure of the GRU has gone through several reformations. In its current form, according to the data available in the publications, the structure of the GRU consists of 12 main departments and 8 auxiliary departments and departments. Main Controls:
First Directorate - countries of the European Commonwealth
Second Directorate - Americas, UK, Australia, New Zealand
Third Office - Asian countries
Fourth Directorate - countries of Africa
Fifth Directorate - Operational Intelligence Directorate
Sixth Directorate - Directorate of Radio Intelligence
Seventh Directorate - NATO
Eighth Directorate - sabotage special forces
Ninth Directorate - military technology directorate
Tenth Directorate - War Economy Directorate
Eleventh Directorate - Directorate of strategic doctrines and weapons
Twelfth Directorate

Auxiliary Directorates and Departments:
Space Intelligence Directorate
personnel department
Operational and technical management
Administrative and Technical Department
Department of External Relations
Archival department
Information Service

Special training for GRU officers is carried out at the GRU Academy (Military Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Defense). Training is carried out at three main faculties:
Faculty of Strategic Undercover Intelligence
Faculty of agent-operational intelligence
Faculty of Operational-Tactical Intelligence

The Academy has an adjuncture and higher academic courses

These people prefer not to put their lives on public display. The GRU special forces do not even have their own designation, name. And the most interesting thing is their secrecy in their work. After all, special forces work in all parts of our planet, and its representatives can be dressed in absolutely any clothes, including the uniform of the army of Great Britain or other countries.

Spetsnaz is an elite unit of the military forces of the Russian Federation. Many films are made about special forces soldiers, books and articles are written about their hard work for the glory of the motherland. True, the cinematic performance is most often either embellished or understated. Only the best of the best are worthy of service in the GRU, which is why very strict selection rules have been created for them. And the most banal training day can shock an ordinary person who has nothing to do with serving in the country's law enforcement agencies.

On TV or on the Internet, they will never tell or write about the real operations of the special forces, most often the noise rises because of the failure, but, fortunately for everyone, this practically does not happen.

What is GRU

Each country has its own military structures, and it just so happened that foreign intelligence performs one of the most important roles in protecting its state. In the Russian Federation, such functions are performed by the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, which means the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. However, the predecessor of this name was the Main Intelligence Directorate. This is how the GRU decoding will sound.

Initially, it conducted its reconnaissance and sabotage activities in the interests of the Soviet Union, and was also the central body of military intelligence.

Intelligence under the king

Even before the overthrow of the monarchy, under tsarist Russia, sabotage and reconnaissance groups operated. These were specially trained military units. If we recall the reign of Ivan the Fourth, then it was he who in the 16th century was the founder of the guard service, which consisted of Cossack detachments. All warriors were tested for physical health and brilliant weapon skills (cold and firearms). Since in those days the Tatars constantly raided Moscow, the main purpose of these detachments was to monitor the surrounding territories in order to prevent an attack.

At a later time, Alexei Mikhailovich already revealed the Secret Order to the country. The intelligence officers of the order collected and structured all messages and informative reports about possible enemy attacks and about the activities of countries in the neighborhood.

In 1764, Suvorov and Kutuzov put forward the idea of ​​creating special detachments of rangers. Their operations were carried out in parallel with the main tsarist army. Jaegers staged raids and ambushes, and also attacked the enemy in the mountains, forests and other difficult areas. These were the so-called beginnings of special forces. And in 1810, Barclay de Tolly established the Expedition for Secret Affairs.

History of the GRU

When in the USSR, after the famous revolution, the workers 'and peasants' Red Army was formed, there was a need to form a special unit, which was supposed to take over the performance of intelligence functions. On this occasion, in 1918, the Bolsheviks came to the creation of the Field Headquarters of the Revolutionary Council. One of the components of this headquarters was a special department for registering, collecting and processing information that was obtained by intelligence officers. As a result, counterintelligence activities were completely shifted to the shoulders of the Field Headquarters.

In 1921, the Intelligence Department of the Red Army Headquarters was formed, it was engaged in intelligence not only in difficult and war times, but also in peacetime, they were one hundred percent covered by intelligence work. Undercover intelligence was carried out in Soviet times. In the countries neighboring the Union, special detachments of partisans were created, which carried out subversive operations.

In 1934, intelligence control was transferred to the People's Commissar of Defense. There were successful missions during the Spanish war, but even such a high-ranking structure as the country's intelligence was touched by the tragedy of repression. And by the beginning of World War II, half of the intelligence service was shot. Since 1942, we have known Razvedupr under the familiar name GRU (Main Intelligence Directorate).

The first special forces units in the USSR

In 1950, a secret decree was issued on the formation of special groups, whose task was to carry out sabotage operations on the side of the enemy. All the military districts of the Union were equipped with such units, forty-six companies were created in total, each consisting of one hundred and twenty soldiers. And it was they who were the basis for the creation of special forces in 1962. After 6 years, they formed a special regiment for training employees.

The original purpose of creating such units was to conduct sabotage in the war with NATO and confront the United States in the Cold War. The image of these actions was the collection and denunciation of all information from the enemy rear to the headquarters of the GRU, sowing panic in settlements where civilians live, undermining important infrastructure facilities, and large-scale actions to destroy enemy headquarters. Weapons of mass destruction were strategically important, special forces destroyed missile silos, airfields used by long-range enemy aircraft, launchers, bases with submarines.

The Afghan war was fought with the active participation of GRU agents, and the special forces played an important role during the unrest in the North Caucasus. Moreover, Tajikistan and Georgia also did not go unnoticed by elite units during their military operations (the last war with Georgia in 2008). At the moment, the Syrian war is taking place with the participation of Russian special forces.

Now the command of the GRU is giving orders to act not only by force, but also by information.

The renaming from the Soviet name took place in 2010. Everyone who is in the service of the GRU (decoding - the Main Intelligence Directorate) celebrates their holiday on the fifth of November, dedicated to military intelligence officers.

Management Goals

The GRU is not only a foreign intelligence agency, but also controls other military organizations in Russia, and also appears as an executive military force.

The goals of Russian intelligence can be divided into three points:

• The first is to provide all information intelligence data, first of all, to the President of our country and further in order of precedence of "roles" (Ministry of Defense, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Security Council) in the issue of protecting the borders and internal integrity of the Russian Federation. This information is necessary for conducting domestic and foreign policy and so on.
• The second is to provide suitable conditions for the successful implementation of political action in the field of defense and security.
• Third - intelligence contributes to the rise in the economic sphere, scientific and technical developments and military security of the Russian Federation.

Headquarters

The first headquarters of the GRU was located on Khodynka. The new one was built 11 years ago and is a large complex of different buildings. The area of ​​​​the headquarters is huge - about seventy thousand square meters. For physical training of security forces inside there is even a sports complex with a swimming pool. The construction of such a grandiose project cost the country nine billion rubles. There is a special forces complex on Grizodubova Street.

Bat

Probably, everyone saw in the photographs or in the news the stripes on the uniform of the GRU officers in the form of a bat. Where did this animal in the emblem of the GRU come from? According to some sources, one of the Yekaterinburg journalists during the service decided to draw an emblem for his unit. It happened in 1987, and the bosses and colleagues liked the bat inside the globe so much that it was immediately printed on the entire uniform of the special forces.

flower theme

To understand what the GRU is today, you can look at the meaning of the modern emblem. At the moment (since 2002), the bat has been replaced by a red carnation, it means stamina and devotion. The emblem of the GRU is the personification of an adamant decision to achieve the goal. The three-flame grenada is explained as an honorary badge with a historical past; it was awarded to the best military among the elite units.

True, in the new headquarters, the mouse, laid out on the floor, remained adjacent to the flower.

What does it consist of

Information about the structure of the GRU, its special forces at the moment is as follows:

• Western military district with the second brigade.
• The tenth brigade, mountain, operates in the North Caucasus.
• The special forces who participated in the Afghan and Chechen campaigns were from the fourteenth brigade of the Far East.
• The Western Military District has a sixteenth brigade, it also participated in the Chechen wars and in the protection of the OVO in Tajikistan.
• The Southern Military District is being defended by the twenty-second brigade. Has a guards rank after the Great Patriotic War. Here is the twenty-fifth regiment of special forces.
• The Central Military District is equipped with fighters from the twenty-fourth brigade.
• A unit of the 346th brigade is located in Kabardino-Balkaria.
• The fleet on the Pacific Ocean, the Baltic and Black, North Seas is equipped with its own special reconnaissance detachments.

What is the total number

For a better understanding of what the GRU is, it is worth paying attention to the absolute secrecy about the number of its fighters. Since the activities of the special forces are inaccessible to mere mortals, there are no reliable sources about the real size of the GRU headquarters. Some say that there are six thousand of them, and some say that there are fifteen thousand people.

Moreover, in addition to the existing special forces units, general military detachments are also subordinate to the GRU, and their number is approximately twenty-five thousand fighters.

Training centers

At the moment, you can train as a special forces fighter at higher educational institutions in Ryazan and Cherepovets. The Ryazan Airborne School trains specialists for sabotage activities. There is also a Military Academy of the Ministry of Defense in the Russian Federation. It has three faculties: strategic undercover intelligence, tactical and undercover-operational intelligence.

You can enter only knowing several foreign languages ​​and passing a special list of requirements.

Selection of fighters

What is required from candidates entering such serious institutions for study? Passing entrance tests is a very time-consuming process, but with the help of personal patience and accumulated knowledge, as well as physical strength, you can enter.

Absolute physical health is an indispensable requirement for all applicants. But the future commando does not have to be two meters tall and have a large muscle mass, because the most important thing in this matter is endurance. Arranged raids are usually accompanied by fairly heavy burdens and can take many kilometers.

The standards for admission, for example, include running three kilometers in ten minutes, be sure to pull yourself up twenty-five times, the hundred-meter run should fit in twelve seconds, there should be at least ninety push-ups from the floor, the same number of times you need to do the exercise for the press (here given just two minutes). One of the most important skills in the work of a special forces soldier is hand-to-hand combat.

This is followed by a very meticulous physical examination. A person must have unshakable stress resistance. His head must be in working order in any situation. To do this, use trained psychologists, and then the candidate is checked on the "lie detector". The whole family and even distant relatives are being checked by special state security agencies. Parents must unsubscribe to the leadership about their consent that their son will serve in a special forces unit.

Preparation for service in special forces

Long hard training, learning proper hand-to-hand combat (it is believed that it tempers the spirit and character of a fighter), fighting with the use of various objects (not only melee weapons), fights with initially stronger and more experienced opponents - all this awaits a recruit when training in such a serious subdivision. It is at these moments that the fighter realizes what the GRU is.

From the first day of training, there is a program to suggest that all of them, special forces soldiers, are the best not only among Russian military structures, but also in the whole world.

One of the difficult tests that are given specifically to find out whether a person can survive his physical potential is a long stay in a waking state, a load of transcendent physical and psychological actions. And, of course, training in the possession of small arms (of all kinds).

According to many, in Russia for several years now, in the course of a large-scale military reform, the systematic destruction of the GRU, a specific structure created at the dawn of Soviet times, has been carried out. The reform, of course, affects other types of the Armed Forces, and not only military intelligence, but it is intelligence that is destroyed in the first place as a result of giving it the so-called "new look".

Researchers agree that it is categorically impossible to leave everything as it was, however, analysts have a very ambiguous attitude towards the ongoing reforms. Many consider the negative result of the reforms to be the revealing fact that 70,000 square meters of the complex of buildings on Khodynka, built for the GRU General Staff, once the second largest and most powerful intelligence agency after the KGB and the FSB, were empty. 9.5 billion rubles were spent on their construction.

What is GRU

GRU GSH stands for the Main Intelligence Directorate, organized under the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. During the entire post-revolutionary period and up to the present day, this body has been the central governing body of the Russian Armed Forces. Subordinates to the GRU chief of the General Staff, as well as the Minister of Defense of the country. The department is in charge of all types of intelligence, which is carried out in the interests of the Armed Forces. This includes, among other things, intelligence:

• space,
• electronic,
• undercover.

The latter is given priority in the GRU. It is the agents who obtain secret materials and the latest samples of foreign weapons.

As Emperor Alexander III said almost 150 years ago, Russia has only two faithful allies - its army and navy. Today, in 50 or 150 years, this statement will remain an axiom. Russia will not be able to exist without these strong and loyal allies, and they will not be strong without a developed and powerful military intelligence.
Can the story of the GRU end?

A Brief History of the GRU

November 4, 1918 is considered the birthday of the GRU. It was then that the Registration Department was formed as part of the Field Headquarters of the Soviet Red Army. The order to create it was signed by the chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the republic, which was then Leon Trotsky. He appointed Semyon Aralov, a veteran of Russian intelligence, as the first head of the GRU. This legendary personality was formed in the period before the First World War.

Initially, the GRU was called RUPSHKA - the Registration Directorate of the field headquarters of the Red Army (Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army). The purpose of its creation was to coordinate the efforts that intelligence services made on all fronts and in the armies, obtaining information for the General Staff of the Red Army.

From the very beginning of its activity, the GRU was engaged in:

• strategic and operational intelligence,
• obtaining military-technical information,
• obtaining information about the latest scientific achievements in the field of aircraft.

A few years after its birth, RUPSHKA became the 4th Directorate of the General Staff. In official documents, it was designated as military unit N44388. It was renamed the GRU General Staff on February 16, 1942 by order of the People's Commissar of Defense. At the same time, serious staff changes and structural changes took place.

Another major milestone in the history of the development of management was November 22, 1942. It was then that military intelligence, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense, was withdrawn from the GRU. From now on, undercover intelligence was no longer conducted by the intelligence departments of the fronts, and the department itself became subordinate to the People's Commissar of Defense, and not to the General Staff of the Red Army.

His main task at that time was to conduct undercover intelligence abroad. First of all, these were the territories of the USSR occupied by the Nazis. At the same time, the RU - Intelligence Directorate, whose task was to lead military intelligence, appeared as part of the General Staff.

The legendary structure, which is known to everyone as, appeared already in the post-war years. His birth is considered to be 1950. From 1955 to 1991, the GRU was called the GRU General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR. Since 1991, it has received its modern name, i.e. GRU General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. One can only speculate about its structure and number, since it is a state secret.

What's going on with the GRU these days

Despite top secrecy, some data is still disclosed. In 2009, the leadership of the department was changed to a more accommodating one. As everyone is assured, this was done in order to prevent the complete collapse of the GRU. The reform, however, has rather tragic consequences.

According to known data, before the reform, the organization included 12 main departments, as well as 8 auxiliary departments and departments. At present, key departments have been reduced to a critical minimum, most of which have been liquidated with the dismissal of thousands of specialists. The scientific research (R&D) and experimental design (R&D) departments that existed in the specialized research institutes of management, known as the 6th and 18th Central Research Institute, stopped working.

According to inaccurate data, every second officer was dismissed, and this led to the loss of the opportunities that existed within the department. Thus, out of 7,000 officers, less than 2,000 are currently left. The final "cleansing" took place after the resignation of V.V. Korabelnikov, who was the head of the GRU from 1997 to 2009.

Almost completely destroyed electronic intelligence. According to The New Times, on the territory of foreign countries there was a 40% reduction in the number of so-called "mining units" in the management. They were responsible for undercover and strategic intelligence.

The situation with the education of new personnel is also difficult, since the training of illegal agents was completely curtailed after the liquidation of the specialized faculty. Professors and teachers of the Military Diplomatic Academy, which previously had three faculties, were massively dismissed:

• agent-operational intelligence;
• strategic undercover intelligence;
• operational-tactical intelligence.

The faculty involved in the training of military attachés has also undergone an extreme reduction. The analytical apparatus of the GRU was liquidated. Foreign intelligence units are gradually transferred to the subordination of the SVR.

Even the most experienced officers are subject to dismissal for rather formal reasons, such as length of service. The specifics of military intelligence suggests that only experienced army officers can become specialists, and this, of course, leads to the fact that already established military men aged 30-35 years old come to the GRU, and the older they get, the more they should be valued . The waste of the real "golden fund" of the specific Russian intelligence community is obvious.

Such radical changes have led to the fact that at present, from a unique strategic tool in its essence, capabilities, scale, the GRU has been forcibly turned into an amorphous, purely secondary structure. Against the background of such degradation, most likely, the next optimization management reform will take place.

Apparently, the Ministry of Defense is placing its bet on the Senezh special forces center, which was previously removed from the control of the department, and was directly subordinated to the Chief of the General Staff. Astronomical amounts are allocated for its development. The Minister of Defense oversees the center, ordering non-standard, even exotic weapons and foreign-made equipment for it. The desire is obvious: something similar to the cinematic American "Delta" is being created. For most analysts, this position of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense causes slight bewilderment, since the place where specialists are trained is at the same time a recreation center for top management.

There is an opinion expressed by the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and especially by the chief of the General Staff that those who do not agree with the reform of the army, bringing it to a new look, who express their opinion, which is different from the leaders of the Defense Ministry and the General Staff, have no place in the army. It is good that they are not yet accused of complicity with American democratic aspirations or the collapse of the army and the country.

There are, however, such circumstances when it is impossible to remain silent and watch how the army is destroyed. There is that limit of human capabilities and the limit of possibilities for restoration - and the return of combat readiness and combat experience to the army - which is unacceptable to cross.

Despite the fact that in the country the general idea and plan for reforming the Armed Forces is not presented to the general public, at first glance (and the view of an amateur) the ongoing activities are fully consistent with the tasks set and voiced by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief - to make the army combat-ready, combat-ready, compact and mobile, equip it with new technology.

But the question arises: did the army fail to cope with the tasks assigned to it in August 2008? Did it and did it successfully. But now new demands have been voiced, and the reform has begun! Although each of these requirements is so vague that you can look at it from any angle, but you can’t see the essence.

After all, what is compactness? Is it one person, one million military personnel or 1% of the country's population? Probably, the size of the Armed Forces and their structure should depend on the long-term interests of the country and the military policy and military construction consistent with them, on the threats associated with pursuing a foreign policy and ensuring the implementation of this particular course. On the other hand, it depends on the capabilities of a potential adversary - today and in the near future - to intervene in the activities of the military-political leadership and the country as a whole by military means using conventional weapons, primarily high-precision ones. This is what the armed forces of countries around the world are striving for.

What needs to be done so that outwardly everything turns out perfectly, and the internal content leads to destruction and degradation, to the collapse of the army, capable of waltzing with four tanks after a long training, and in the end not fulfilling its main task - to protect the country and its people from impending aggression?

The answer is simple. It is necessary to constantly set such tasks that are outwardly attractive, but internally destroy the system. With such actions, we will try to understand this article using the example of the army elite - the GRU special forces.

The reason for writing this material was the information that the 24th separate special forces brigade received an order to change the place of deployment. From Irkutsk, where she moved on her own (700 kilometers) in early 2009 from Ulan-Ude, she was ordered to move to Novosibirsk. Officers were ordered not to take their families with them. Is this a political, military decision or another adventure?!

The threats and challenges of our time for Russia - and specifically in the Siberian strategic direction - require a separate consideration, which is beyond the scope of this story.

If this is a political decision, then how can it be consistent with the fact that now from Ulan-Ude to Novosibirsk - and this is more than 1,500 kilometers (in a straight line) - there will be no formations and units of the Armed Forces in Russia? After all, even the military registration and enlistment offices in our country are now represented by purely civilians.

If this is a military decision, then how is it consistent with the fact that 25% of the country's territory, huge reserves of fresh water, which is one of the main strategic resources, in these conditions remain completely without army cover? How are the requirements for the mobility of the army and the creation of the OSK coordinated under these conditions, when the operational borders of the Central Military District (OSK) pass along the border of Lake Baikal, while the nearest military unit, separated from these borders, is more than two thousand kilometers away?

Or was this decision made by the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation independently, bypassing the Supreme Commander-in-Chief? Does Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin know about him? By whom is it approved?

How history repeats itself

What is special forces? This is a generic name. Special forces are specially created, specially trained and equipped formations of the Armed Forces. They are designed to solve specific problems in the interests of achieving military, political, economic and psychological goals, both in peacetime and in wartime.

Russian special forces take their history from ancient times, but the most significant events in its history are described during the Patriotic War of 1812, when Denis Davydov became famous for his partisan actions.

In the Soviet Union, as in most countries of the world at the beginning of the 20th century, understanding the importance of the development of military art and new forms and methods of warfare, they began to create special-purpose military units.

The Red Army in the 1930s created airborne troops and professional sabotage units in its ranks. But for various reasons, including the random whim of the command, they did not receive proper development.

As a result, by the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the special forces were in a deplorable state. The destroyed had to be restored at the cost of enormous material and human losses. And they were able to restore it only because the war had a long character.

After the victory, the special forces for the most part were again disbanded ...

The situation in the world required adequate action, and from October 24, 1950, a new history of special forces and subunits of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff - GRU Spetsnaz begins. First, companies were created, then they were transformed into battalions and separate brigades of the Special Forces.

The bulk of the brigades was created in the 1960s. The main primary task of the special forces is the fight against mobile nuclear weapons, which are in service with NATO armies.

The GRU special forces were also designed to conduct sabotage operations on the territory of other countries or behind enemy lines, counter-sabotage, counter-terrorist and counter-guerrilla operations, conduct special intelligence, and organize a partisan movement behind enemy lines. Why "was"? Because there is no longer a GRU special forces, the GRU department, which was previously responsible for special forces, cannot lead them. This is the result of the new look of the army.

Finest hour of special forces - Afghanistan. By this time, the special forces consisted of fourteen separate brigades of the Special Forces of district subordination, two separate training regiments, separate detachments of the Special Forces and about thirty separate companies. During the unfolding of the armed conflict - and history repeats itself - the formation of special forces began again, the formation of battalions and brigades, the new 15th and 22nd (later Guards) separate brigades of the Special Forces operating in Afghanistan.

From 75 to 80% of the effectiveness of all combat operations in the 40th Army is on the account of the GRU special forces, and the composition of the special forces is about 1% of the total number of army personnel. During this struggle, the special forces lost more than 700 people (including non-combat and sanitary) during ten years of bloody hostilities (1979-1989), while destroying more than 17 thousand dushmans, capturing 825 prisoners. For heroism and courage, seven special forces soldiers were awarded the title "Hero of the Soviet Union", four - posthumously. About nine thousand special forces soldiers were awarded military decorations. Let's remember these numbers!

The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the division of special forces. The brigades left for their states. Eight of the fourteen brigades turned out to be in Russia (2nd arr. Special Forces, 3rd arr. SpN, 12th arr. 67th arr. Special Forces, which were the reserve of the Supreme Commander).

The "winged infantry" had the 45th separate reconnaissance regiment of the Special Forces of the Airborne Forces. The GRU special forces also included naval reconnaissance points and detachments to combat underwater sabotage forces and means.

Everyone remembers this difficult time, when not only there was no gasoline, but the salaries of officers were not paid, when expired NATO military rations were given out as an encouragement. During these years, the special forces were again no longer needed, and they once again began to reduce them, removing the most combat-ready units, moving them from one deployment point to another, leaving the officers without apartments and livelihoods.

But again, an armed conflict broke out on the borders of Russia and again the GRU special forces were needed. During the first and second Chechen campaigns, the GRU special forces showed all their skill, performing in most cases from 70% to 90% of all tasks facing the group of troops. For the heroism and courage shown during the counter-terrorist operation, twenty-nine special forces soldiers were awarded the title "Hero of Russia". And it is difficult to enumerate those who were awarded military orders and medals. One can only say that in 2002 more than two thousand commandos were awarded combat awards. Remember, reader, these figures!

Taking into account the importance of special forces in modern armed conflicts and considering the prospect of the development of the military-political situation in the world and the threats hanging over the country, in 2003 in the Krasnodar Territory the 10th arr.

Already in the course of the armed conflict to force Georgia to peace, the private soldier of the 107th detachment of the Special Forces of the 10th arr.

Thus, before the start of the transfer of the army to a new look, there were nine deployed special forces brigades in the GRU special forces. Thirty Heroes of Russia and five Heroes of the Soviet Union served in them and were forever enrolled in the lists of personnel. This speaks not only of the courage and courage of the special forces, love and devotion to the Motherland, but also of their indispensability during armed conflicts and wars, of high professional training and combat stability. Let's remember and write down, reader, these figures!

The brigades were deployed in all six military districts, one each in the Leningrad, Moscow and Far Eastern military districts, and two each in the North Caucasus, Volga-Urals and Siberian military districts. In operational formation, they had from one to two brigades in the Strategic Direction, which corresponded to both the science of war and army art, and made it possible to use special forces formations without additional expenditure of time and money.

I do not know the reasons why the reduction of individual Special Forces brigades began, perhaps due to the fact that they were the most combat-ready and combat-ready units of the army, having up to 80% of officers with combat experience in the first and second Chechen campaigns. Perhaps there are other, more global reasons hidden here.

Despite the significant lack of facilities for housing and barracks, training grounds, fleets of combat vehicles and towns in general (with a few exceptions, for example, the 12th arr. contract with combat experience.

Historians and specialists will have to give an exhaustive answer: why the two most active in combat use and effectiveness of the brigades were reduced. For example, the 12th arr. of the Special Forces (the city of Asbest), which had five Heroes of Russia in its composition for two "Chechen" campaigns, fully equipped and deployed in the former beautiful military town of missilemen.

The second brigade that fell under the knife was the 67th arr. Special Forces (the city of Berdsk), stationed in the very heart of Russia, near Novosibirsk. She had six Heroes of Russia in her ranks. Its personnel were the last of the entire Russian special forces on January 30, 2007, left the territory of Chechnya, and six months later received a Directive to disband.

Thus, out of twenty-nine Heroes of Russia, forever enlisted in the lists of formations, with one stroke of the pen, the exploits of eleven Heroes were “nullified” at once, only by this reducing the morale and combat component of the special forces by 40%. Remember these numbers too, readers!

Speaking about the special forces of Russia, we will return to this topic and start with the 67th arr of the Special Forces, but for now we will briefly consider what attention is paid to special forces in the world, what are its current state and development prospects in leading countries, and also how the political and the military leadership of these countries.

SAS, "black berets" and others

The trend of military development, according to leading foreign and Russian military experts, is based on the predominance of special methods of confrontation in the nature and methods of warfare and armed conflicts. They are aimed not so much at the direct destruction of the enemy on the battlefield as at undermining his military and political system from within. The most striking examples of modernity are Libya and Syria.

It is quite natural that in the armed forces of the leading countries of the world, increased attention has long been paid to the modernization and development of special forces, in NATO terminology - Special Operations Forces (SOF).

The leading place in the development of MTR belongs to such countries as the USA, Great Britain, France, Israel, South and North Korea, and, undoubtedly, China comes to the forefront.

The leadership in the creation, level of training, as well as in the number of successfully completed operations belongs to the UK, the SAS (Special Air Service) division. Its slogan, since its inception at the beginning of World War II, has been the phrase "Who Dares Wins". It translates as: "He who risks, he wins." SAS consists of the 21st, 22nd, 23rd regiments and the 63rd communications squadron.

The 21st and 23rd regiments are manned by reservists, and the 22nd Special Airborne Service (SAS-22) is the undisputed leader in the world of special forces. Her appearance is tantamount to a death sentence... with immediate execution.

The SAS level reflects the interest of the British leadership in having at their disposal just such offensive-assault and security forces and means.

SAS does not stand still, and given its combat experience, it is constantly being upgraded, expanding its number and range of tasks. So the newly created formation was called Special Forces support Groupe - a support group for special forces. The second unit created is the Special Reconnaissance Regiment, which is engaged in the study of various disciplines - from foreign languages ​​to undercover training and recruitment of foreign citizens.

173 soldiers of the 22nd SAS regiment took part in the operation in Libya. According to the Argumenty.ru newspaper, the British suffered unacceptable losses during the operation, ranging from twenty-one to thirty-five servicemen - during the assault on Tripoli and in the crash of a helicopter shot down on the border of Libya and Algeria.

The training and maintenance of one commando from the 22nd regiment, according to experts, is estimated at up to 1 million pounds a year.

In second place in terms of importance and readiness, but in first place in the world in terms of numbers and frequency of use, is the US Special Operations Forces (US SOF). Their composition is multifaceted, the number has long exceeded 60 thousand military personnel. The US MTR budget in 1991 was 3 billion dollars, and in 2012 it reached more than 11 billion dollars (about the same amount the US spends on a missile defense system). The numbers are, of course, inaccurate, because everything related to the MTR is a secret.

Comparison of the MTR is not in favor of the number of special forces of the Russian Ground Forces, their financing, planned and ongoing measures to reorganize and reduce Russian special forces.

The US Special Operations Forces have their own Command, which is headed by Admiral William McRaven, and forces from the MTR are present with various missions in 75 countries around the world.

The most significant of these are the US Army Special Forces Airborn, better known as the Green Berets. It is they who can be called Special Forces.

The "Green Berets" in their modern form were created in 1952. The further development of these units was associated with the concept of President John F. Kennedy, who believed that large-scale wars with the countries of the Soviet bloc were unlikely. Therefore, it is necessary to develop the forces of special forces - which, as we see, is the diametrical difference between the concept of Russian reformers.

The purpose of the "Green Berets" is non-traditional methods of warfare, strategic and special intelligence, raid operations, organizing insurgent, guerrilla and sabotage and terrorist actions, assisting foreign allies in ensuring their internal security, combating terrorism and international crime. As well as providing humanitarian assistance, search and rescue, psychological operations, informational operations and operations that prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

The emblem of the special forces is a black and silver coat of arms with the Latin inscription "De oppresso liber", which means: "For the freedom of the oppressed." The two crossed arrows represent the role of special troops in unconventional warfare. The combat knife (dagger) with the tip up lies on top of the arrows, symbolizing the best qualities of the "special forces" fighters - directness and honesty.

Of particular importance in the moral and psychological preparation of the "Green Berets" is the Code of Conduct for a soldier of special forces, a kind of oath of a "special forces", which formulates the basic moral principles and political attitudes of a special forces soldier. Here is just one excerpt: “I am a soldier of American special forces! Professional! I will do whatever my nation requires of me. I am a volunteer, well aware of the risks of my profession... I am a professional soldier. I will teach and fight whenever my nation demands (of me) to give freedom to the oppressed…”

The US Army MTR also includes the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, designed for air support for special forces and special operations.

The MTR also includes one of the oldest divisions of "rangers" or "foresters". It has existed since 1756 and is part of the 75th Regiment of the US Army (US Army Rangers). Motto: "Rangers show the way!"

"Black Berets" are designed for sabotage and assault operations behind enemy lines, their battalion can be deployed anywhere in the world in less than twenty-four hours.

The most closed unit of the SOF is the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment (Delta), which specializes in counter-terrorism operations.

US Air Force Special Operations (US Air Force Special Operations) includes units and subunits of the regular forces, the National Guard Air Force reserve and are trained to support the actions of the pilots.

Special Forces of the US Navy (US Navy Seals). SEAL - literally translated "seal" (also "fur seal"). They are ready to fight in any conditions: sea-air-land.

The US Marine Force Recon is the elite of the elites of this branch of the military. Its task is to carry out reconnaissance operations at a considerable distance from the coast.

Tenth Mountain Division (10 th Mountain Division) prepared for combat operations in mountainous conditions.

Special units of the United States Coast Guard Corps (US Coast Guard Special Operations) are designed to conduct special and rescue operations in rough seas.

The MTR includes the Civil Affairs Brigade (Advisory). Their functions are to work with governmental and non-governmental organizations (at all levels) and with the local population in peacetime and wartime, in emergency situations.

To ensure psychological impact, the SSO has Formations of psychological support as part of the Psychological Operations Group (4th Psychological Operations Group).

And the paramilitary forces of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA Paramilitary Forcer) stand apart. They are designed to organize anti-government demonstrations, which have recently received the name of "color revolutions", instruct and train anti-government actors, search for allies.

China has the third largest special forces. According to the most modest estimates, there are “special operations units” (Special Operations Group) in the composition of the Special Operations Forces - brigades, regiments, battalions and special forces (SpN) as part of the Ground Forces, Airborne Forces and Navy of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) and units Special Forces of the People's Armed Police (NVM).

The formation of China's special forces (special operations forces - tezhong liliang) was launched in the late 1980s of the last century after studying and introducing into the PLA the experience of the Soviet Union in the use of special forces in Afghanistan. It can be assumed that in the PLA alone there are up to ten brigades in terms of the number of districts and fleets, not counting regiments, separate battalions, companies and platoons.

In Chinese terminology, “special forces” or “special operations forces” (SOF) are referred to as “special forces groups (“DaDui”) or “special intelligence groups”. These are well-trained military units that perform special tasks in reconnaissance, sabotage, and the fight against crime and terrorism.

A feature of this type of reconnaissance is that, along with solving reconnaissance tasks behind enemy lines, the reconnaissance agencies of the Special Forces can carry out tasks to destroy important reconnaissance objects, such as strategic nuclear forces, nuclear weapons supply points, command and control points for troops and weapons, important civilian objects.

The main type of intelligence is special intelligence, which performs its tasks both at the tactical level, and at the strategic and national level. The next way to conduct reconnaissance is direct reconnaissance, short combat clashes and offensive actions to reconnoiter and destroy communications centers, launchers, command posts, air defense systems, airfields, bridges, vital industrial and infrastructure facilities. One application is in counter-terrorism activities.

The PLA has seven groups (brigades) for special purposes, which are part of the military districts. Additionally, in each of the eighteen armies, in each of the divisions and in each regiment that is part of the divisions, in each brigade there are special forces units that are part of the SOF.

Due to the fact that China is actively adopting everything advanced in the construction of the army and navy of the leading countries of the world, the number of Chinese MTRs of various subordination can already reach 40-50 thousand military personnel.

Thus, the intentions of our reformers completely contradict the aspirations of the world and Chinese experience.

Brigades ask for fire

The current Special Forces cannot be considered in isolation from the valor, honor, courage, dignity, selfless devotion to the Motherland of their Soviet predecessors. However, not only the pros, but also the cons have migrated to our time.

One of the main drawbacks (due to increased secrecy) was the lack of sufficient experience in the use and management of Special Forces formations by the command of the districts. Hence the detachment of part of this command from the aspirations and concerns that surrounded the special forces, both in everyday life and in a combat situation.

I have no right to discuss the actions of the commanders, give them an assessment, all the more so, but I am obliged to describe the state in which the separate brigades of the Special Forces were located, and what consequences the current decision to transfer the 24th detachment of the Special Forces from Irkutsk to Novosibirsk may lead to.

Another shortcoming, which is also characteristic of modern conditions - when the GRU was unable to defend its strike units and, in accordance with the decision of the National Chief of Staff, transferred them to the Ground Forces - was the absence of a unified Russian Special Forces Command. As it exists in the US Army and other countries.

And this is evident from the entire history of the existence of Russian special forces. Thus, thanks to the allocation of funds for the FTP "Transition to the contract" in 2005-2007. the commanders of the districts made a decision and equipped the 2nd, 10th, 22nd and 16th separate brigades of the Special Forces. The 12th arr. of the Special Forces had an excellent location. Only the Commanders of the Far Eastern and Siberian military districts did not allocate funds to the 14th and 24th separate brigades of the Special Forces.

Due to the almost complete lack of funding, the 67th arr.

For the entire period from 2003 to 2010 (excluding the relocation of the 24th brigade of the Special Forces to Irkutsk and the allocation of funds for the repair of one hostel for a hundred people), both brigades received funds for their development and combat training on a residual basis. The total funding for the arrangement, development of infrastructure, field base and landfills amounted to about 3 million rubles during this period. Is it a lot or a little? Zero!

Both brigades got out of the current situation of lack of barracks, the absence of the rest of the infrastructure of military camps, oddly enough, due to the conflict in the North Caucasus. This was especially helpful for the 67th arr. of the Special Forces, which in 1984 was deployed from a special-purpose company, as the officers joked, “on the funds of this company,” and had one barracks for three hundred military personnel on its territory. The rest of the special forces and some of the individual companies were located in the sports and assembly halls of the neighboring military unit and at the training ground.

We got out of the created situation only due to the intensity of combat training. Let me explain what is at stake. One detachment was "on combat" for six months, the second at that time was preparing to perform tasks in the field camp. Thus, the officers were cut off from their families for a year, but the soldiers could do their direct work, which greatly helped in the performance of combat missions and reduced losses.

The “moment of truth” for the 67th separate brigade of the Special Forces came in 2007, when the last detachment of special forces from Chechnya was withdrawn. The arrived personnel were not subject to dismissal for another six to eight months, in connection with the conclusion of a contract for one year, which means that it became simply problematic to place personnel.

By this time, the field camp, due to constant and intensive exploitation, had fallen into disrepair, since the tents had already served for four or five years or more, with a service life of one year. Yes, and the location with all the amenities, especially in the assembly and sports halls in foreign territory, came to a disrepair.

In the course of conducting special tactical exercises with the 67th brigade of the Special Forces in February 2008, due to the difficult morale prevailing in the unit, it was decided to turn to the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for the Siberian Federal District, General of the Army Anatoly Vasilievich Kvashnin for assistance in allocating financing for the arrangement of the brigade.

Appeals addressed to the Minister of Defense and the head of state were prepared. During the week, the employees of the KEU of Novosibirsk and the administration of the Plenipotentiary Representative did a lot of work related to preliminary calculations of funding.

At the request of the Plenipotentiary, the leaders of the Novosibirsk construction complex and the heads of construction organizations found an opportunity to build new barracks for personnel and service housing for officers. 70% of the officers needed service housing. The price is 29 thousand rubles per square meter. And this at a commercial price at that time in the city of Berdsk 49 thousand rubles.

The leadership of the city of Berdsk allocated plots of land for the construction of residential buildings for officers. KEU carried out calculations and linked the plan for the arrangement of a military camp on the existing vast territory, which made it possible to fully equip the brigade in the shortest possible time. This was reported to A. Serdyukov, Deputy Minister of Defense N. Pankov and the district command.

But instead of deploying construction work and equipping the combat brigade, it was decided to disband it. Thus, the combat brigade, whose officers and soldiers had vast combat experience, and 40% participated in the first Chechen campaign, turned out to be a useless “goods”. About 50% of the officers quit, the rest went to serve in various units, up to the logistics battalion of the 41st Army formed on the former territory of the brigade. The officers jokingly called him "Special Purpose OBMO". And only about 10% of officers, ensigns and military personnel under the contract went to serve directly in the special forces. This approach is very typical for the Russian army.

So ingloriously, due to the whim or incompetence of the leadership, one of the most combat-ready, combat-experienced special forces brigades of the Russian Armed Forces was destroyed. The reader has the right to ask, what part did the leadership of the GRU and the leadership of the intelligence of the district take in this process? I can report - the most direct: a huge number of applications, reports, appeals were sent to the very top of the military hierarchy.

The leadership of the district intelligence frankly dragged on with the dissolution of the connection in the hope that the decision would be canceled and the appeals would be considered. However, funds were not allocated, and the previous decision remained in force.

... We tried to find a place in the special forces for every officer, every warrant officer and contract serviceman. A lot of work was done, many were transferred to the Strategic Rocket Forces, but many did not find a place in the ranks. After all, at the same time in the Urals, the 12th arr of Special Forces was liquidated and they began to reduce the number of special forces due to its transfer to the Ground Forces. And the appeal to the Plenipotentiary did not help, and perhaps played a cruel joke on the brigade and its personnel. It happens, but it doesn't have to be.

With the liquidation of these two brigades of the GRU special forces, the reduction of the officer corps of the Russian army began. Thus, the heart of Russia was left without special forces.

All of us are "brilliant"!

Well, what about our hero, about the 24th arr. Why are they now planning to relocate it once again, but already to Novosibirsk, practically to the place where they finished off the 67th arr. Special Forces three years ago? ..

Having opened the Internet, anyone can read that the 24th separate special-purpose brigade, formerly part of the GRU special forces, was formed on November 1, 1977, like the rest of the GRU brigades, on the basis of a separate company in the village of Yasnaya, Chita region (the village of Khara-Byrka) . Then, for some time, she was on the territory of the military camp, at the Bada station, and later relocated to the city of Kyakhta of the Republic of Buryatia.

Wherever the brigade was stationed, there were neither living conditions for the personnel and officers of the brigade, nor conditions for combat training. There was none of this in its entirety. And only after the redeployment to the city of Ulan-Ude (Sosnovy Bor) the brigade got the opportunity to fully engage in combat training, carry out various activities, involving formations and units from the Urals and to Russky Island, near Vladivostok.

The brigade got the opportunity to have an airfield nearby that accepts any type of aircraft, which allowed it to be a truly mobile connection, provide almost 100% of officers with official housing, receive excellent chefs and respected friends in the person of the leaders of the Republic of Buryatia and Ulan-Ude, who did not spare money for prizes for the best special forces.

In addition, the territory of the military base, its infrastructure, communications, made it possible to equip the brigade according to the latest world experience without significant additional costs. And it would be many times much less money than those invested in vain in the infamous and almost abandoned military town in Botlikh.

The construction of the facility, according to various estimates, took more than 14 billion rubles from the military budget. Now this creation of urban art is again guarded by special forces. All of us ... "brilliant"!

But in the life of the 24th arr. Special Forces, the “moment of truth” came. The leadership of the Armed Forces decided to redeploy the brigade to Irkutsk on the funds of the military engineering school of pilots that had been disbanded the day before.

Relocation to be carried out without allocation of additional funds. Army General Pankov, visiting the school before it was disbanded, said that cadets could not live in such conditions. Well, the special forces could!

The brigade carried out the redeployment under its own power. I would like to emphasize that this was the first example in the history of the Armed Forces of modern Russia. Moreover, taking into account the distance that had to be overcome.

The personnel arrived at the partially functioning school. The material base, starting from the scientific library and ending with aviation equipment, located on the territory of the training airfield, still existed and functioned.

There were both positive and negative moments from such a redeployment. The first can be attributed to the vast territory of the military town. Here, with the provision of appropriate funding (above it was said about something else!), It was possible to perfectly accommodate both the personnel and the officers and ensigns of the brigade. At the expense of the human resources of the Irkutsk Region and the Krasnoyarsk Territory - to equip the brigade with the best personnel recruited under the contract.

The barracks and training fund, to accommodate various training classes, the presence of three sports halls, a full-fledged sports complex and a project for the construction of a hundred-meter swimming pool, an underground shooting range and other necessary infrastructure made it possible to fully deploy the training of the brigade at the point of permanent deployment.

The presence of a beautiful airport a hundred meters from the location of the compound made it possible to keep the brigade in constant readiness for transfer to any theater of operations, provided that there was a sufficient number of military transport aircraft in the Armed Forces. The promises personally given by A.E. Serdyukov on the allocation of funding for the construction of apartments for officers and ensigns inspired confidence in the future.

The disadvantages of such a solution, as always, turned out to be more.

First. The dilapidation of the barracks fund. Both excellent barracks and educational complexes, built back in 1912-1913, partially fell into disrepair due to the lack of long-term funding. However, calculations carried out by KECh engineers showed that with sufficient funding, everything can be restored and brought to a modern look.

Second. The complete absence of a special order-armed training base, which officers and personnel have equipped in full over these three years practically at their own expense.

Third. The lack of a training ground, which did not allow to engage in full-fledged combat training at the initial stage, especially to perform shooting exercises. But with perseverance and ingenuity, the special forces completely solved this problem, having equipped an excellent training ground from improvised means - and this without funding! In fact, the officers did everything, snatching crumbs from their monetary allowance, at a time when billions of MOs were thrown into the air.

Fourth. The lack of a full-fledged fleet for military equipment required the adoption of non-standard decisions and their implementation. It is problematic to place equipment between the Il-76, Tu-22 m2, Tu-22r, Mi-8, which are to be disposed of, on the site, but they coped with this task.

Fifth. Failure to fulfill the promise of the Minister of Defense regarding the construction of apartments for officers, with the exception of the allocation of funds for the repair of one hostel with common facilities for a hundred people, which only partially solved the problem of resettlement.

Sixth. And - most importantly: the separation of personnel from full-fledged combat training to carry out activities related to ensuring the vital activity of the formation naturally affected the combat readiness of the special forces. But, despite the fact that even the warehouses of RAV, special equipment and other property were absent in the unit, the brigade was looking for an opportunity to engage in combat training, and its representatives to take leading positions in all-Russian events held within the framework of the special forces of the Armed Forces. So, the Special Forces groups involved in the performance of special tasks at the Vostok-2010 exercises completely and successfully coped with the assigned tasks, destroying all objects of the mock enemy.

Thus, despite the objective and subjective difficulties faced by the personnel and command of the 24th separate brigade of the Special Forces, its leadership was able to partially solve the whole range of unsolvable - in the absence of funding - tasks. Namely: to preserve the military camp, equip it and develop it in the interests of training special forces, maintain the combat readiness of units and subunits, improve the life and life of personnel and families, despite the fact that instead of the previously existing more than 250 apartments in Ulan-Ude, here, in Irkutsk, only twenty were allocated.

Prospects in Novosibirsk

What awaits the 24th brigade of the Special Forces in Novosibirsk? This is only a profile view without taking into account the political, economic, moral and ethical tasks facing the state.

The transfer to a new place of deployment again for a certain time (at least a year) will knock the brigade out of the usual course of combat training, and during this period at least two or three conscriptions of completely unprepared special forces will complete their service.

The military camp in which they plan to place the brigade was previously occupied by a reduced division, and then a motorized rifle brigade. This is a huge territory, 50% consisting of fleets of combat vehicles - the protection of property will distract more than half of the personnel from combat training.

The huge funds allocated five years ago for the repair of several barracks of this town and its operation without proper maintenance will require additional investments, and the deployment of special forces in it is contrary to international experience.

There are multi-storey apartment buildings around, and it seems to me problematic to organize combat training - with the imitation of a real battle inherent in special forces - under the windows of the civilian population ... in the center of a million-strong metropolis!

The military camp does not have the infrastructure that special forces need, and the territory on which this infrastructure can be built. And the international airport of Novosibirsk, located on the opposite bank of the Ob River, a few tens of kilometers away, calls into question the capabilities of the brigade in its combat mission.

Also questionable is the placement of officers near the military camp due to the lack of territory for the construction of residential buildings. And the overcrowding of the building, if such a decision is made, will entail an increase in the terrorist threat for the officers of the brigade.

An elementarily planned terrorist operation deprives the brigade of the ability to resist, blocking it in the city center, and even with the possibility of capture by terrorists and holding hostages from civilians in the form of a human shield.

The construction of service apartments on the territories of the former parks of military vehicles requires huge funds for the reclamation of the territory, and will also take, according to the experience of building and commissioning housing for military personnel, at least three to five years. This means that all this time the brigade will be at least limited in its combat readiness.

Moreover, the construction of apartments for officers in other districts of the city puts an end to the constant combat readiness of brigades declared by the National Guard and the hourly readiness of brigades to perform any tasks.

Even the conduct of physical training by the personnel of the brigade is fraught with injuries and death of military personnel under the wheels of civilian transport. Why? Due to its accelerated movement through the city streets clogged with traffic jams. And winding circles around a parade ground or a stadium is not entirely consistent with the tasks of special forces. After all, special forces must train constantly, and not just while in the field.

The Shilovo training ground, on which the motorized rifle brigade withdrawn from the city will be engaged, does not allow, due to its capacity, to simultaneously engage in the special forces brigade, turning it into an ordinary light infantry brigade without specific heavy weapons and specific tasks facing special forces.

The allocation of an additional training ground for special forces on the territory of the Novosibirsk Region is, in my opinion, problematic.

During their three years in Irkutsk, most members of the brigade's military families have already found work. The relocation of the unit does not provide for employment by the Ministry of Defense and the arrangement of people in a new place. All this means a deterioration in living standards. Even with the rise in monetary allowance. Inflation and life "for two families", reduction of payments - in case of non-fulfillment of combat training programs - will not allow officers to fully devote themselves to army service.

This list can be continued indefinitely, but the question arises: why one combat unit of the special forces was disbanded, and after only less than three years, another one will be redeployed in its place. What is the strategy here? The fact that it is impossible to reduce the brigade directly in Irkutsk, but it is necessary to spend several more hundreds of millions and billions of state funds.

Thus, from the military-political, strategic and economic points of view, there is no expediency in the redeployment of the 24th separate special-purpose brigade to the center of the city of Novosibirsk. Such a decision will inevitably lead to a decrease in the combat readiness of the brigade, to the exposure of a strategically important section of the territory of Russia, to insurmountable problems that may arise in the event of a threat of unleashing an armed conflict in this strategic direction, and hence the loss of more than 60% of the territory of Russia.

The future of Russian special forces

As is customary in Russia itself, the future of its special forces depends directly on Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. Only he can make a decision and prohibit further collapse, setting specific tasks, taking into account the most advanced international experience in the development of forces and means of special forces - in the interests of the security of our country.

What, in my opinion, should be reflected in the decision of the head of state?

First. The appearance in Russia of the Special Forces with the approval of a special status for them.

Second. The creation of the Special Command of the Russian Special Forces and the reassignment of all the forces and means of special forces available in the Armed Forces to it. His subordination directly to the President as a reserve of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, with possible operational interaction with the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff and the preservation of the abbreviation "SpN GRU".

Third. Formation of a separate budget for the special forces of Russia and the allocation of separate funding for all its items with the consolidation of opportunities for the development, order, acquisition of the necessary weapons, equipment and equipment.

Fourth. Creation of new types of formations and units from other types and types of troops and their reassignment to the Command of the Special Forces.

Fifth. The transfer to the command of the Special Forces Command of the entire necessary set of forces and means to ensure the entire spectrum of combat missions.

Sixth. Creation of a special training center for Russian special forces, equipped with the most advanced equipment, with the possibility of working out on its territory the entire range of special events. There are two suitable places for its creation: the first is Molkino (Krasnodar Territory), the second is Ulan-Ude (Sosnovy Bor).

Seventh. Transfer to the direct subordination of the Command of the Special Forces of the Novosibirsk Combined Arms School to ensure the training of all categories of officers, warrant officers, intelligence sergeants and special forces in special training programs.

Eighth. Restoration of the departments of intelligence and special operations in the Combined Arms VUNTS and the Academy of the General Staff - to organize comprehensive training for both commanders, commanders and heads of intelligence at all levels, as well as civil servants.

Ninth. Adoption of a new Concept for the construction, deployment and functioning of formations and units of special forces at new bases.

The territory of special forces bases should include the entire complex for accommodating personnel, officers and their families, all the necessary infrastructure for training and mastering a specialty. Also, the presence of a civil component: from kindergartens, schools and recreation areas to enterprises for the employment of family members.

Placement on the territory of the bases of the entire complex of weapons, equipment, army aviation, aircraft, the presence in the immediate vicinity or inclusion in the zone of the base of special training grounds, shooting ranges, tactical and special fields for the daily training of personnel.

The construction of complexes should be carried out according to the most advanced technologies using low-rise construction and light structures made using new technologies. Such an approach will make it possible to significantly save the funds necessary for equipping the bases, without significant costs in ten, twenty or thirty years, not to carry out repairs (using paint and brushes), but to completely change the concept of placement, arrangement, equipment and operation of these facilities.

Tenth. Such an approach will make it possible to realize that the Armed Forces are really beginning to change their appearance, moving from assurances to practical actions and becoming fully combat-ready, professional, compact, mobile, technically well-equipped and trained troops capable of performing assigned tasks in any conditions before and during armed conflict or local war.

This is a rather incomplete list of priority tasks related to the preservation of one of the leading structures of the modern army, capable at the initial stage of resolving the course of an armed conflict in our favor without the use of strategic nuclear forces and other measures. But this is an obvious need.

Words of gratitude

For obvious ethical reasons, I cannot describe all the difficulties that accompanied the special forces. I want to express special gratitude to the Commanders of the 67th arr. the second Chechen, and Colonel Shustov Mikhail Sergeevich (2002-2009), under which the brigade performed with honor and in 2007 completed its service in Chechnya.

For an officer, the disbandment of a unit is akin to death, and Mikhail Sergeevich Shustov also had the difficult mission of disbanding the brigade, equipping officers and personnel. Thank you for your joint service to all officers, ensigns, soldiers and sergeants of the 67th separate brigade of the Special Forces of the GRU.

I want to express my special gratitude to the commanders of the 24th arr. Special thanks to Colonel Zakharov Vladimir Vladimirovich. With him, the brigade successfully performed combat missions.

Words of gratitude to Colonel Borovsky Yuri Nikolaevich, under whom the brigade not only successfully coped with the performance of combat missions, but also became the initiator of holding special special forces competitions in Siberia and the Far East. In 2009, without loss and in a short time, she not only relocated on her own for 700 kilometers to Irkutsk, but also equipped the place of deployment on her own.

Many thanks for the joint service to all officers, ensigns, soldiers and sergeants of the 24th separate brigade of the Special Forces of the GRU.

Thanks to everyone who took the time and got acquainted with this boring, in my opinion, material. Thus, I wanted to fulfill this promise and talk about officers, warrant officers, sergeants and special forces soldiers, including the 67th arr. of the Special Forces and the 24th arr. of the Special Forces.

Thanks to all Russian special forces for their joint service!

From the dossier of "Special Forces of Russia"

KANCHUKOV Sergey Alekseevich,major general. Born in the Zaporozhye region of the Ukrainian SSR. In 1975, after a year of work as a teacher in a secondary school, he voluntarily chose his life path, devoting it to serving and protecting the Motherland.

Pupil of the Omsk Higher Combined-Arms Twice Red Banner School named after M. V. Frunze. He graduated from the Military Academy named after M. V. Frunze in between battles.

He received higher military and state education in the forge of military personnel of Russia - the Military Academy of the General Staff named after K. E. Voroshilov.

In 2006, taking into account the specifics of the service and the need to approach the problems of protecting the state from a scientific point of view, he defended his Ph.D.

The entire service of Sergei Alekseevich took place far from Moscow, was saturated for the most part with combat experience, wonderful people, and fits in three regions: the GDR (GSVG), the North Caucasus (SKVO), Transbaikalia (SibVO).

During the years of service, General S.A. Kanchukov went through almost all command positions in military intelligence. He started as the commander of a reconnaissance platoon of the 60th motorized rifle regiment (Ravensbrück) of the 16th Guards Tank Division of the 2nd Guards Tank Army, and ended up as the head of reconnaissance - deputy chief of staff for reconnaissance of the Order of the Red Banner of the Siberian Military District, disbanded in 2010, in accordance with with the transition of the army to a new look.

He served in the army for thirty-six calendar years (forty-eight years in preferential terms). Of these, more than twelve years were spent in zones of armed conflict.

For his service, General S.A. Kanchukov did not look for easy ways, did not refuse positions, did not play around and did not grovel before his superiors, respected his subordinates, did not change his views and surnames for the sake of conjuncture, did not evade participation in hostilities, did not strive to rewards and did not spare rewards for subordinates.

General's Creed:

"Loyalty" — Loyal to the motherland!

"Oath"  - took allegiance to the USSR, devoted to his people, his Motherland and the Government.

"Honor" is above all.

“Care for subordinates”  is in the first place.

“Respect for superiors” —only for smart ones.

“Respect for friends and colleagues”  is mutual, to be honest.

“Task” —must be completed under any conditions.

“Own” —we don’t leave… under any circumstances!

We are up to any task! I have, had and will have my point of view!