Many Russian military theorists believe nuclear weapons provide the best answer to the challenge posed by conventionally armed precision guided munitions, which have become such an important part of Western military strategies. The new doctrine asserts that “deterrence of may also be nuclear.” The new role envisioned by Russian military doctrine seems to be a kind of “nuclear umbrella” that protects Russian ground forces abroad as well as allies and members of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Yevgeni Volkov, a retired senior officer who advised Soviet and Russian Strategic Arms Reduction Talks negotiators and is now a member of the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics and the International Academy of Information. Because conventional force capabilities have declined, “nuclear weapons of Russia begin to play a more important role,” said Gen. It resembled US doctrine in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when the Pentagon placed heavy emphasis on nuclear weapons to deter conventional conflict. New Russian military doctrine, adopted in 1993, reflected that reality. In practice, this means that Russia’s conventional capabilities are stretched thinly over a vast geographic area. Unable to rely on massive conventional forces, as it has in the past, the Russian military today plans to develop a much smaller, highly mobile force. In part, the increased importance stems from the dramatic shrinkage of Russian military forces from more than four million troops under arms at the height of the Cold War to fewer than two million today. The importance of strategic nuclear weapons to Russia’s overall military strategy has grown, rather than declined, since the collapse of the Soviet Union five years ago. Lebed described the RVSN as being “rusty but still effective.” Indeed, all evidence is that Russia is still capable of waging a general nuclear war. Asked about the RVSN, former Russian national security advisor Alexander I. The severe political turmoil and fiscal uncertainty in today’s Russia have provoked considerable skepticism in the West about the effectiveness and reliability of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces (RVSN).Īn examination of the public record of recent RVSN operations suggests the following conclusion: Russia’s intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) force is still managing to perform its mission, though it faces serious short- and long-term problems.
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