#13
Mir Novostei
July 18, 2002
MILITARY REFORMS: THE FIRST STEPS
Reforms ought to mean more than troop strength cuts
Author: Sergei Shapovalov
[from WPS Monitoring Agency, www.wps.ru/e_index.html]

MILITARY REFORMS HAVE BEEN UNDER DISCUSSION FOR AROUND A DECADE ALREADY, BUT ONLY RECENTLY HAVE THE FIRST STEPS BEEN TAKEN TO REALLY TRANSFORM THE STATE'S MILITARY ORGANIZATION. THE GOVERNMENT HAS STARTED OFF WITH SOME MEASURES WHICH DON'T REQUIRE SUBSTANTIAL SPENDING.

Reforms to the army and navy have been under discussion for around a decade already, but only recently have the first steps been taken to really transform the state's military organization. Since the government can't afford to completely re-equip the Armed Forces, it has started off with some measures which don't require substantial spending.

A recent presidential decree has made some changes to Armed Forces regulations. From now on, military personnel can only be confined to the guard-house if they are detained on suspicion of committing a crime, and for no longer than 48 hours; or by court order.

In the past, commanders could order soldiers to be confined to the guard-house for up to ten days for breaches of discipline. Now officers have lost the power to do this. These changes have been made because the new Criminal-Procedural Code came into effect from July 1.

Right now, the last soldiers in the Russian Armed Forces to be confined for breaches of discipline are leaving the guard-houses. Now confinement to the guard-house will only be applied to criminals. Time will tell how this "liberalism" affects law and order, and discipline, among the troops.

Thus far, military reforms have essentially meant sweeping troop strength cuts. This year alone, over 110,000 military personnel will be made redundant, including some fairly high-ranking people.

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov recently expressed some harsh criticism of military commanders. He accused generals of "lacking initiative, being insufficiently goal-directed, and acting unprofessionally".

The defense minister was particularly displeased with the state of discipline in the formerly elite Airborne Troops. For example, last year there were 41 deaths in this part of the Armed Forces; and in the first half of this year, there have already been 32 deaths among the paratroops due to various accidents. There was another unfortunate incident near Omsk the other day: a deserter from the paratroops shot himself dead a few hundred meters from his unit.

The number of serious accidents and incidents of crime has also been rising in other parts of the Armed Forces.

Not all is well in the Black Sea Fleet either. A messy legal dispute continues between Admiral Komoedov, commander of the Black Sea Fleet, and his direct superior, Admiral Kuroedov, the Navy commander- in-chief. Meanwhile, widespread fraud has been revealed within the Black Sea Fleet involving the awarding of senior ranks. Between 1998 and 2002, over 500 people were promoted unlawfully. A senior Defense Ministry official says: "As a result of large-scale fraud, the Black Sea Fleet now has 515 first-rank captains, whereas it ought to have only 260." The defense minister has already signed orders imposing penalties on around ten commanders from the Navy's headquarters and the Black Sea Fleet staff.

As part of the military reforms, a major purge of senior officers is expected in the Army and Navy. Last year, over 300 generals were made redundant; this year, around a thousand may lose their jobs.

(Translated by P. Pikhnovsky)

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