In the past times decade, Russian Federation has made a strategic breakthrough inwards damage of developing its military, but earlier its operations inwards Syria, it had non tested its armed forces inwards combat. In this regard, Syrian Arab Republic became the perfect laboratory for mastering skills together with testing equipment of the Russian armed services machine.The Russian-Georgian War For the Russian Federation, the Russian-Georgian War inwards 2008 was a harsh lesson regarding its armed services weaknesses together with strategic backwardness compared to the West, together with it triggered a reassessment of the existent province of affairs with the Russian Army. Although victory was achieved quickly, the armed services noted its deficiencies together with the advantages Georgia enjoyed compared to Russia. For example, Russian Federation did non select unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), together with its regular army had problems with armed services equipment; preparation together with preparedness; reconnaissance; together with synergy on the battlefield alongside all armed services branches together with fighting forces.
In September 2008, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev offered several factors to improve the Russian regular army past times 2020: 1
• Improve the organizational staff construction together with the scheme of troop basing
• More effectively contend the armed forces
• Improve personnel training, armed services education, together with armed services science
• Equip the regular army with the most advanced weapons
Particularly, attending was paid to the achievement of air superiority, inwards delivering precision strikes on solid ground together with body of body of water targets, every bit good every bit inwards the operational transfer of troops.
Armament Program
The inaugural of all phase of Russian armed services reform launched at in 1 lawsuit later the Russian-Georgian War. According to The Military Balance 2017 , seventy percentage of regular army weaponry was replaced. 2 Nikolay Makarov, Chief of the General Staff from 2008 to 2012, compared the armament programme with the armed services reforms of Peter of Great. iii It was Makarov who introduced the sentiment of Russian special operations forces, who are mastering their special skills inwards Syria.
Reform inwards the regular army was started past times Vladimir Serdyukov, government minister of defense strength from 2007 until 2012. His cardinal goals were increasing the mobility of armed services forces, ensuring the highest levels of readiness inwards armed services units together with districts, together with bringing the regular army to 21st-century standards. Under his command the armed services units together with districts became much smaller together with to a greater extent than mobile. According to about Russian experts, these measures were preparing Russian Federation to participate “in the local conflicts inwards the territories of one-time Soviet Union.” 4
Current Minister of Defense Sergey Shoygu continued the reforms, bringing his ain innovations. Shoygu worked to improve combat preparation together with began constant checking of regular army readiness through armed services drills together with training. Training exercises select intensified drastically since 2014. According to The Military Balance 2017 , the number of interservice exercises increased past times xxx percentage inwards comparing to 2014, together with the number of articulation exercises was upwards past times 50 percent. Under Shoygu’s supervision, Russian Federation opened the National Military Command Centre, which became the operational hub during the Syrian campaign.
The Syrian civil state of war threatened the final remnants of Soviet gains inwards the Middle East together with pushed Russian Federation also to laid about restoring its naval presence inwards the eastern Mediterranean region. The Operational Squadron was reestablished inwards 2013 later several decades of hiatus to, according to Shoygu “ensure the naval presence of Russian Federation inwards the Mediterranean. All this volition ensure the protection of our national interests inwards such an unsettled, unsettling region.”
Use of the Military Before Syria
In Dec 2015, Alexander Turchinov, caput of the Council of National Defence together with Security of Ukraine, stated, “For Russian Federation both Syrian Arab Republic together with Donbas are complimentary of accuse testing grounds.” v Some Russian experts cite Crimea every bit the inaugural of all lawsuit of the tremendous results of the armed services reforms. half-dozen Ineed, “little greenish men” from special operations forces, airborne forces, together with other units were used inwards Crimea, together with it is reasonable to say the Crimean performance was the debut of the Russian Army’s “New Look.” But Crimea was unlike from Ukraine together with Syria. In Crimea, Russian Federation was demonstrating to the Earth its breakthrough inwards armed services logistics together with operations together with its novel armed services equipment. It was showcasing its achievements. In Syrian Arab Republic it is using together with testing them.
If Ukraine was perfect for testing the world forces together with artillery, Syrian Arab Republic was perfect for the utilization of missiles together with air forces. For example, it latterly was revealed that Russian Federation is testing a novel stealth fighter, the Sukhoi Su-57, at Khmeimim air base. 7
The Syrian Arab Republic Campaign
On 22 Dec 2016, Vladimir Putin together with Sergey Shoygu held a coming together of the Collegiums of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation. Both expressed their satisfaction with the armed services reforms together with receive inwards Syria.
According to Putin, the tasks of the Russian Army inwards the coming years are: 8
• Pay careful attending to whatever changes inwards the residuum of might inwards armed services together with politics inwards the world, peculiarly along Russia’s borders, together with innovate corrections to plans for the neutralization of potential threats
• Ensure the balanced evolution of all armed services branches together with fighting forces
• Master the novel types of precision weaponry, electronic agency of communications, reconnaissance, management, together with electronic warfare
• Ensure the warfare potential of the strategic nuclear forces
• Bring the strategic non-nuclear forces to a degree of performance that would let them to neutralize whatever potential armed services threats to Russia
• Continue the electrical flow momentum inwards the rearmament of the regular army together with navy
In conclusion, Putin said Russian Federation has to explore opportunities from the Syrian armed services receive together with that the efficiency of Russian weapons is opening novel opportunities for armed services technical cooperation.
At the same time, Shoygu concentrated on the to a greater extent than concrete aspects together with challenges of the Russian Army. nine He stressed ii achievements inwards the evolution of the armed services inwards 2016: the modernization of the Russian Army together with the sense gained during the armed services drills together with directly engagements inwards Syria.
According to Shoygu, the Russian Army gained huge armed services together with combat experience. Since the inaugural of all of the Syrian Arab Republic receive inwards 2015, Russian Federation made 18,800 sorties together with conducted 71,000 strikes, demonstrating a high degree of air readiness. However, at that spot also were several failures with naval aviation. During her Mediterranean deployment inwards 2016, the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov lost ii aircraft, a MIG-29K together with an SU-33. Those losses were blamed on a lack of sense alongside Russian pilots.
Moreover, Shoygu emphasized that during the Syrian Arab Republic receive Russian Federation got ample opportunities for testing novel armed services armament together with equipment inwards directly fighting. Testing showed a high degree of efficiency, every bit good every bit highlighted defects that were non detected during the proving the world testing. Weapons that did non move past times tests primarily were ground-launched cruise missiles, communication systems, together with radio technical intelligence. 10
The government minister also mentioned the National Military Command Center. The optic was created inwards Dec 2014 together with became the intellectual, command, together with communications nub of the Russian armed services together with political leadership. Syrian Arab Republic offered a run a endangerment to bear witness coordination of urgent armed services operational tasks. In this regard, Shoygu pointed out that the optic provided a unmarried scheme of interdepartmental interaction together with brought operations to a higher level.
Testing novel weapons
Russian leadership has never refuted the sentiment that Russian Federation is using Syrian Arab Republic every bit a testing ground. In Dec 2015, Vladimir Putin suggested improve exercises for the regular army would live on hard to imagine. 11On 22 March 2017, he encouraged unusual states to purchase products of the Russian military-industrial complex together with in 1 lawsuit again mentioned Syria. He pointed out, “The capabilities of Russian weapons, their exceptional reliability together with effectiveness are also manifested inwards the struggle against terrorism inwards Syria. . . . The utilization of aviation together with air defense strength systems inwards existent combat weather gives absolutely invaluable sense to flying together with engineering scientific discipline personnel, air defense strength calculations, every bit good every bit to developers of domestic armed services products.” 12
These speeches advise Russian Federation is practicing inwards existent state of war together with winning geopolitical together with armed services benefits. Putin noted “the modern Russian weapons select passed the test, together with non on the firing range, but inwards the existent world, inwards the fight. This is the most severe test. This sense volition let us to brand the necessary adjustments to improve the efficiency together with reliability of the technology, to do a novel generation of weapons, improve the armed forces to increment their combat capabilities.” 13
Russia has deployed together with tested almost every armed services strength inwards Syria; however, priority was given to the utilization of aerospace forces, especially inwards conjunction with the unlike armed services branches together with fighting forces—most especially the world forces. Moscow tries to employ staff inwards Syrian Arab Republic from all Russian air bases to develop the flying skills of its pilots.
For simply several months of 2017, according to the 22 Feb written report of the Ministry of Defence, Russian air forces conducted 5,681 airstrikes. fourteen In addition, 86 percentage of the Russian air force, including 75 percentage of long-range aviation crews; 79 percentage of tactical air forces crews; 88 percentage of military-transport, together with 89 percentage of regular army aviation crews gained combat experience.
Recently, the Valdai Discussion Club posted an infographic of the novel types of weapons Russian Federation is testing inwards Syria. xv For example, Russian Federation tested novel aircraft: Su-35 (Flanker-E+) together with Su-34 (Fullback); missiles: Kaliber, KAB-500, Kh-29, together with Krasnopol; together with novel helicopters: Mi-28H (Havoc) together with Ka-52 (Hokum-B). In addition, Russian Federation has been using Special Operations Forces inwards Syrian Arab Republic since the beginning. sixteen Putin fifty-fifty involved the National Guard to acquire inwards the combat fields. 17
In Dec 2015, Russian Federation conducted its inaugural of all occupation of combat robots inwards the Syrian province of Latakia. xviii Six robotic “Platform-M” together with 4 “Argo” took component subdivision inwards the operation. Self-propelled artillery mounts “Akatsiya” together with Syrian soldiers supported the robots' attack. The reconnaissance was carried out past times IAI Searchers, Orlan-10, together with Eleron-3 UAVs. The collection of intelligence, robot control, together with target designation was carried out past times the newest automated command-and-control system, called “Andromeda-D.” According to Russian General Vladimir Shamanov, the top dog business office of the robots is to provoke burn downwardly together with thereby seat the positions of the “terrorists.” nineteen The robots themselves were controlled from Moscow. 20
It is a novel phase for the Russian army, every bit the Kremlin is striving to utilization state-of-the-art armed services doctrine such every bit netcentric warfare, integration of all information inwards an operational environment, personnel, equipment together with machines, together with geographical landscape to provide a sum motion painting of the operational armed services situation. It is soundless unknown whether Russian Federation used the novel universal combat platform “Armata,” which is going to live on an integral component subdivision of the network-centric state of war system, inwards Syria. 21
Conclusion
In damage of experience, the Syrian Arab Republic receive has provided meaning benefits to all Russian armed forces.
Russia found ample opportunities to utilization together with bear witness precision-guided munitions inwards directly combat. It was able to bear witness tactical appointment of UAVs inwards a multifariousness of operations, including reconnaissance together with correction of indirect fire. Even the reported drone laid on on Khmeimim air base of operations volition live on meticulously studied together with used to discover ways to found an appropriate defense strength scheme inwards highly strategic places such every bit the Kerch Strait Bridge betwixt the Black Sea together with the Azov Sea. 22 Russian aerospace forces also made existent breakthroughs inwards flying hours inwards all branches together with gained sense on how to to organize defenses against UAVs.
Because of the Syrian Arab Republic campaign, Russian Federation is able to projection might beyond of its “Near Abroad” together with to solve logistical together with render problems. It also got indispensable sense inwards organizing, employing, together with integrating armed services forces.
In Syria, Russian Federation also is tackling problems related to arms export. Recently, during the coming together of the Commission for Military Technical Cooperation with Foreign Countries, Putin in 1 lawsuit once again stated that inwards the Syrian Arab Republic receive Russian Federation succeeded inwards demonstrating the “exceptional reliability together with effectiveness” of Russian arms. 23 It no incertitude was a telephone telephone to potential buyers.
While Russian Federation is trying to demonstrate to the West the strength of its armed services together with its might defend itself, according to Jane’s , Moscow is most denote the deepest cuts of armed services expenditures since the early on 1990s. 24 Even if these cuts happen, it is probable Russian Federation volition move on armed services operations inwards Syria.
The Syrian Arab Republic receive brought Russian Federation a run a endangerment to reshuffle the regular army inherited from the old Soviet Union. It has given Moscow mobile together with experienced forces for external together with domestic use, with less budget burden. Instead of armed services drills, forces select gained battle sense inwards Syria.
2. “The Military Balance 2017,” International Institute for Strategic Studies,www.iiss.org/en/publications/military%20balance/issues/the-military-bala... .
15. “Testing New Types of Weapons past times the Russian Armed Forces inwards Syria,” Valdai Discussion Club, 21 Feb 2017, http://valdaiclub.com/multimedia/infographics/testing-new-types-of-weapo... .
16. Dave Majumdar, “Get Ready, America: Russian Federation Has Its Own Deadly ‘Delta Force,’” The National Interest , sixteen March 2017, http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/get-ready-america-russia-has-i... .
22. Ridvan Urcosta, “The Kerch Strait Bridge together with Russia’s A2/AD Zone Around Crimea,” Eurasia Daily Monitor 15, no 21 (12 Feb 2018).
24. Craig Caffrey, “Russia Announces Deepest Defence Budget Cuts since 1990s,” Jane’s Defence Weekly , sixteen March 2017, www.janes.com/article/68766/russia-announces-deepest-defence-budget-cuts... .
Mr. Urcosta is a researcher at the Institute of International Relations at Warsaw University. He has worked every bit an goodness on Russian Federation at the Polish Institute of Foreign Affairs together with specializes inwards Russian unusual policy. Before the Russian annexation of Crimea, he worked every bit a civil retainer inwards the Sevastopol State Administration.
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