Throughout the history of mankind, the military power of the state has been crucial in political dominance and economic development. With the help of the armies, states and peoples resolved disagreements and sought economic preferences. However, the first declared task of any military forces is to ensure security and protect civilians. Although armies today occupy an important place in international relations, their use is limited by a large number of international treaties and agreements.
Russian Armed Forces
Officially, all the branches and types of troops of the country together are called the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. According to the laws existing in the country, Russia needs the military to ensure the integrity and inviolability of the territory and fulfill international obligations undertaken by the country's leadership in accordance with international agreements.
A distinctive feature of the military forces of the Russian Federation is the possession of one of the largest arsenals of weapons of mass destruction in the world, which includes nuclear weapons. Russia's nuclear arsenal is second only to the American one. For the effective use of these weapons, the Russian army has a variety of means of delivery to enemy territory.
Russian Air Force
The history of the air fleet of modern Russia leads from the Imperial Air Fleet, which existed from 1910 to 1917. The creation of the air fleet was preceded by the long work of scientists and engineers under the leadership of Nikolai Egorovich Zhukovsky, who created the first aerodynamic institute in the Moscow Region. In 1910, the latest aircraft were purchased from the French, and from that moment the development of the Russian air fleet began.
The Air Force reached its peak during the Soviet Union, when numerous models of fighters, attack aircraft and bombers, including strategic ones, designed to deliver nuclear weapons, were created.
In the nineties of the XX century, the air forces began to actively degrade, which was manifested in a decrease in the quality of personnel training, obsolescence of equipment and the cessation of strategic development due to a sharp decrease in the level of funding. However, already in the XXL century, interest in new developments in the field of aviation gradually began to revive, pilots got the opportunity to train more often and make training flights, and engineers set about developing new generation aircraft. In 2015, the Air Force became part of the Aerospace Forces of Russia.
Russian Navy
One of the important components of the military forces of Russia is the Navy, which is the successor to the Navy of the USSR and the Russian Empire. The modern fleet of Russia is divided into the following large associations: the Baltic, Pacific, Black Sea, Northern fleets, and also includes the Caspian flotilla.
The Navy includes submarine, surface forces, naval aviation, as well as marines and coastal defense troops. The main purpose of the Russian fleet is to protect the territory from an attack from the water, ensure the safety of maritime communications, as well as delivering surprise attacks on enemy territory.
Like other units of the Russian Armed Forces, the navy can take part in international operations that meet the interests of the state, as well as in joint exercises with the fleets of other countries. The largest events in which the Russian Navy takes part are the anti-terrorist operation in Syria and the fight against piracy in the Horn of Africa.
The number and composition of the Navy
The peak of power and the greatest number of naval fleets reached in the eighties of the XX century, when the number of ships in the fleet reached 1561. The nineties and two thousandths accounted for a significant reduction in the number of fleets. As a result, in the fleet for 2010 there are 136 ships. However, several large cruisers are still in development and on the slipways.
The composition of the modern navy is diverse and includes both coast guard boats and heavy missile cruisers, capable of autonomous navigation for many months. However, one of the most important parts of the Russian fleet is its underwater component. Nuclear-powered missile-carrying cruisers guarantee the security of Russian statehood, guaranteeing a retaliatory nuclear strike against the enemy.
In terms of the strategic development of the fleet, mention is made of the design and construction of aircraft-carrying cruisers, which will become the core of the aircraft carrier group similar to the American ones. However, until now this project remains only on paper, and Russia has the only aircraft carrier cruiser, which has been under modernization since 2017.
Air defense and missile defense
Existing as a separate type of troops until 1998, missile and air defense were attached to the Air Force in order to optimize and save money.
In air defense, both missile systems and air units are used. Air defense has its own radio intelligence and means for early detection. The troops and fleet have their own anti-aircraft forces and means.
Missile defense is part of the defense doctrine of the Russian Federation and is designed to protect the country from a strategic nuclear strike by the enemy.
Strategic Nuclear Forces of Russia
The strategic nuclear forces are the part of the RF Armed Forces that has nuclear missile weapons as its main weapon. According to the latest version of the country's defense doctrine, Russia can use nuclear weapons in response to the use of any type of weapon of mass destruction or conventional weapons against it, but in cases where such use threatens the very existence of the Russian state.
Strategic nuclear forces are evenly distributed between the Navy, the Air Force and the ground forces. Russia has intercontinental missiles equipped with nuclear charges on both submarine nuclear cruisers and mine-based missiles.
Social security for military personnel
All the power of the Russian armed forces would have no value, if not for the people who serve in the Russian army. One of the most important points in the reform carried out since the beginning of the 2000s is to increase the prestige of the military profession.
In order to make the service in the armed forces of the Russian Federation attractive, the state takes care of the social security of the military, both active and retired military pensioners. People are serving for Russia and the armed forces not in vain, since they receive the corresponding allowance, benefits, social housing, and special pensions.