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Russia's Military Policy
Author/s: V.I. Lutovinov
Issue: Sept-Oct, 2001
Military policy, or a policy pursued in the military area, is a necessary and
important element of the general political activities aimed at providing for a
state's national security, preventing wars and military conflicts, and
strengthening strategic stability. In Russia, like in any other state, it has
two interconnected aspects, domestic and foreign. The foreign aspect is about
using military force in interstate relations, while the domestic one determines
long-term prospects and day-to-day work the state does to maintain the defense
capability and employment readiness of the Armed Forces.
A specific but not isolated part of politics at large, the military policy
integrates most different types of political, economic, and scientific
activities of socio-political forces and of the state institutions the latter
create specifically for the purpose, directing them towards the shaping and use
of violent means of war as well as of addressing the tasks connected with
provision of military security of the individual, society and the state.
Thus, military policy is a component part of the overall state policy, which is
directly linked with the creation of the military organization, preparation and
use of military means for the attainment of definite political goals. Its goal
is creating favorable conditions for stability in the state and society, and
providing for their security and defense.
Constituting the legal basis of the state military policy are the Constitution
of the Russian Federation, National Security Concept, Military Doctrine, federal
laws "On Security," "On Defense," and other legislation conforming to the UN
Charter, 1975 and 1992 Helsinki agreements, the Paris (1990) and the Istanbul
(1999) charters, as well as the Russian Federation's international treaties,
agreements and understandings in the military security area.
In keeping with the new scientific approach, the Russian Federation's military
policy is due to perform in the state two main functions: scientific-analytical
(forecasting) and organizational-practical (managerial). Their ratio is
determined by the overall state policy, objective conditions of the state's
functioning and development, as well as subjective factors connected with the
military and political leadership, attitudes to science, military affairs, etc.
During the last few decades of the 20th century, which were marked by the end of
the Cold War and major socio-economic and military-political changes, the
military policy of Russia ceased to be confrontation-seeking. It is peaceful and
distinguished by an even-handed and constructive approach to the most difficult
problems, and by a wish for cooperation, military-political one in particular,
with most different countries. Its most important vector consists in securing
favorable, mutually beneficial economic, political, cultural, scientific and
other ties and relations with all countries, primarily neighboring, and in
establishing a type of the world order, where settlement of outstanding
differences is not by fiat of one single state or a certain military-political
alliance of states, but as a result of mutually acceptable collective
understandings, predominantly under the UN aegis.
The content of military policy is determined by the economic, political,
national and other interests of the Russian State as well as those of the
nations, social groups, and regions composing it; by potential and real
capabilities of Russia as a subject of military policy, which make it possible
to implement those interests; by internal and external aspects of activity of
the country and its leading institutions; and by the degree of threat to its
security.
Within the pattern of military policy one may single out a number of relatively
independent components: a totality of ideas and principles; military-political
decisions and plans; practical activities to implement points of doctrine.
The totality of ideas and principles, which form the theoretical foundations of
the Military Doctrine, has been elaborated by way of a deep-going analysis of
military-political practice. The doctrinal ideas and principles determine the
general trend of the state's military-political activity and a systems approach
to its practice in the short and long term.
Military-political decisions and plans is one of the most complex and crucial
elements of military policy. As is common knowledge, the military-political
situation in Russia and the world is subject to continual changes, which come
unexpectedly, affecting the most profound vital interests of states, peoples and
communities. They call for a timely, occasionally emergency reaction,
responsible and sometimes critical decision-making, as well as consistent and
unswerving pursuance of decisions in military-political practice. The decisions
must reflect features of a concrete situation and unconditionally conform to the
doctrinal tenets and principles.
Practical activity aimed at implementing the doctrinal tenets is along these
main lines: control of the military organizational development, which requires
elaboration and implementation of a science-based military-economic and
technical policy, as well as the main aspects of social, demographic, and
cultural activity; regulation of military-political relations with states or
coalitions of states, using a range of methods and assets of military diplomacy;
management of military-political actions of different nature and scale in the
territory of Russia and in the international arena, designed to secure
coordination with allied forces, centralization, or indirect employment of
forces not involved in a conflict (incident); resolute opposition to an
adversary and rout of his military forces.
The mechanism for subject-object structural interaction is as follows. The state
(as the subject) spells out political aims and prepares relevant violent means
(military and non-military) to attain them, with the aims and means due to
conform to the concrete conditions of a given military-political situation.
Otherwise one will have either to raise the qualitative level of attracted
violent means, which in modern conditions is undesirable, or to make
corresponding adjustments to aims and goals of military policy. Any considerable
imbalance between the set goals and ways of their attainment may lead not only
to a collapse of military policy but also to an entire political crisis.
A most important vector in Russia's military policy is providing for its
military security. The new military-political approaches and concepts are
increasingly often dominated by views to the effect that war and military force
is not the most effective political tool and that security cannot be ensured by
military means alone. Therefore, one should seek to place the main emphasis in
the settlement of conflicts and disputed problems on political means and
diplomatic efforts.
Like before, the leadership of Russia links military security with efforts to
create a democratic, rule-of-law state, put through socio-economic reforms,
assert principles of equitable partnership, mutually beneficial cooperation and
good-neighborliness in international relations, shape a common and comprehensive
international security system, and preserve and strengthen universal peace.
Russia regards as its partners the states whose policies do not impair its
national interests and security, and are not at variance with the UN Charter and
the rules of international law. This country strictly observes the effective
arms limitation, reduction, and elimination treaties; assists their
implementation and maintenance of regimes they define; aids extension of
military confidence-building measures, including reciprocal exchanges of
military information, coordination of doctrines, plans and measures of military
organizational development. The Russian Federation gives priority to promotion
of military (military-polit ical) and military-technical cooperation with member
states of the CIS Collective Security Treaty, consolidating efforts for the
creation of a unified defense space and collective military security on the
basis of the principles of equality, mutual benefit, and good-neighborliness.
Within the context of these approaches, the Russian Federation's main aim in the
military sphere for today and in the short term is as before securing favorable
conditions for stabilization and reliable protection of the state, society and
the individual. Accordingly, the aims of the Russian Federation's military
policy at the modern stage are preventing military clashes and promptly
neutralizing military provocations in the world arena; assisting termination and
interdiction of armed conflicts between former USSR republics; defending its own
independence and assuring security, sovereignty, inviolability of borders, and
territorial integrity; performing international obligations to render military
aid to allied states and participate in peacekeeping operations; maintaining
this country's defense potential at a level commensurate with the existing and
potential military threats with account taken of its socio-economic and
financial capabilities.
It is to the decisive degree up to the military-political leadership of Russia
to pursue science-based and even-handed military policy, perform the necessary
measures in the area of military cooperation with other countries, streamline
the military organization, and create the state's military might corresponding
to modern realities.
The main content of efforts to ensure military security, one connected with
performance of military-political activity mostly in the sphere of the Russian
Federation's peacetime foreign policy, is this: shaping and implementing unified
state policy in the security area; maintaining domestic political stability and
protecting the constitutional system; promoting and strengthening friendly
(allied) relations with neighbors and other states; creating and improving a
defense system of Russia and its allies; providing an all-out support for the
organizational development of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, other troops,
military units and agencies, and maintaining them in a state of readiness for
coordinated action to prevent, localize and neutralize external and domestic
threats; protecting facilities and structures in the World Ocean, outer space,
and in the territory of foreign states, shipping, fishing and other types of
activity in the adjacent maritime zone and in remote regions of the World Ocean;
guard ing and defending the state border of the Russian Federation within the
confines of the border territory, the airspace and the underwater medium, as
well as the exclusive economic zone and the continental shelf and their natural
resources; supporting, if necessary, the Russian Federation's political actions
through the holding of relevant measures of military nature; monitoring
reciprocal performance of commitments in the arms limitation, reduction and
elimination area and in the sphere of confidence-building measures; assuring
readiness for participation (or participation) in peacekeeping activities.
At the same time, the potency of political and diplomatic methods and means of
ensuring military security must not be exaggerated. Interstate relations are
built upon the overcoming of deep-going contradictions and serious differences
as well as protracted tackling of complicated problems. Not infrequently a
country has to accept some or other restrictions, make concessions, and on top
of that to have truck with manifestations of military-political inertia,
destructive impulses, national egoism and adventurism.
Controversial trends and factors in military-political situation, a possibility
of its destabilization due to the presence of sources of military danger on the
one hand face the world community and international organizations, primarily the
UN and OSCE, with the need to consolidate efforts for the prevention of military
conflicts and crisis settlement, while confirming the well known rule that the
peaceful expedients of military security are effective only if based on
sufficient military might, on the other. Thus, as long as the non-use of force
has not become a norm of international relations, the national interests of the
Russian Federation require that it have military might sufficient for its
defense.
One of this country's most important tasks in the international security sphere
is strategic deterrence with the aim of preventing both conventional and nuclear
war, as well as performance of allied commitments. For this, as the present
writers see it, it must possess a nuclear potential as the main deterring
factor, one capable of assuring infliction of desired damage on any aggressor (a
state or a coalition of states) in any conditions, and a factor of international
stability and peace. Of particular importance is the doctrinal tenet that the
Russian Federation reserves the right to use in critical situations nuclear
weapons in response to a large-scale action with the use of conventional
weapons.
Conscious of the concern other states feel regarding nuclear weapon employment,
Russia meticulously implements international treaties on strategic offensive
weapons and antimissile defense and is ready for further reduction of its
nuclear weapons on the bilateral basis with the U.S.A. and on multilateral basis
with other nuclear states down to the minimum levels corresponding to the
strategic stability requirements; is for conveying an universal character to the
regime of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and their delivery vehicles, for
a resolute enhancement of the regime's effectiveness via a combination of
prohibitive, verification and technological measures, and for termination and
universal prohibition of nuclear tests.
A priority of the military policy of the Russian Federation is building up an
effective military organization designed to provide for guaranteed protection of
national interests and military security of the Russian Federation and its
allies. The main way of achieving this aim is to give the military organization
the optimal characteristics as to its strength, fighting strength, TOE
structure, command and control systems, and all types of support. One of the
indispensable conditions is optimizing consumption of materiel and monetary
funds and increasing effectiveness of their use on the basis of an
interconnected and coordinated reform effort directed at all components of the
state's military organization.
There are doctrinal tenets on unified principles, priorities and vectors of
strategic planning, organization, planning, and employment of the Armed Forces
in accordance with real military security requirements and national economic
capabilities, designed to tackle this vital task. All of this calls for the
pursuance of a consolidated state policy, unification of efforts of all arms and
agencies of power, as well as concentration and rational use of allocated
forces, assets and resources. In effect, this confirms and asserts at the
doctrinal level the strategic line, which was first outlined in the Main
Principles of the Military Doctrine, later formulated in the Main Directions of
Military Organizational Development, specified in the Concept of Organizational
Development of the RF Armed Forces, and set out in detail in the Fundamentals
(Concept) of the State Policy of the Russian Federation on Military
Organizational Development. Creating a political platform for the implementation
of this line is the new wor ding of the National Security Concept, whose demand
of principle is a radical reduction in the number of ministries and agencies
authorizing military service. Of key importance is creation of a single,
centralized system of state and military control, and of integrated systems of
technical and rear support, military education, and military science.
A crucial condition of providing for military security of the Russian Federation
must become target-oriented allocation of budget funds for development programs
in territories boasting a high concentration of scientific and technical
potential, creation with state support of an infrastructure helping to
commercialize R & D results while simultaneously protecting intellectual
property inside the country and elsewhere, and development of a general access
scientific and commercial information network.
Playing a particular role in this respect is the human factor and the serviceman
social status. The problem will not be solved by a stroke of the pen or even by
a next decree signed by the Russian Federation President. It is important to
thoroughly elaborate the legal status of troops, military units and command and
control elements. The main thing at the present stage is to give a new impetus
to the military reform. For this, an ideological support--currently lacking--is
needed. There is a need for a broad-scale explanation work to convince the
population and the Armed Forces personnel of the expediency of changes. One of
the aims of the reforms is restoring the prestige of the military service,
without which it is impossible to preserve the combat potential of the Armed
Forces and strengthen the national defenses. It is undoubtedly very important
that the matters of reform be tackled by highly skilled professionals, for
otherwise there will be inevitable failures.
A sine qua non of military security of the Russian Federation must become the
creation of a model of global, regional and sub-regional security, based on
principles of equality for all and resting on both historical traditions and the
positive experience of democratic development.
Implementing the military policy of the Russian Federation is in the context of
the general policy of this country, aimed at the construction of a multi-pole
world and a secure Europe without divides and at ensuring partnership and
good-neighborliness with all countries and peoples.
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