MINSK, April 4 (RIA Novosti)

The Belarusian State Military-Industrial Committee is planning to develop a range of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) with vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capability, the committee’s chairman Sergei Gurulev said.

“We are considering a wide range of UAVs with VTOL capability – from mini-sized to medium and heavy class UAVs,” Gurulev said in an interview with “VPK.Belarus” publication.

Several Belarusian defense firms have done R&D work and made progress in this area, he said.

Belarus has already developed a number of mini-UAVs and the medium-class Grif-1 tactical drone.

Grif-1 has an operational range of 100 km (over 60 miles) and can carry a payload of up to 30 kilograms.

04/04/2012 RIA Novosti

Military prosecutors have uncovered several schemes to embezzle federal funds under contracts for modernization of Russia’s nuclear arms complex between the Defense Ministry officials and construction firms since March 2011.

“Military prosecutors launched an investigation into cash embezzlement in construction contracts for Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces in March 2011,” the Main Military Prosecutor’s Office said on Wednesday.

“As a result of probes, several criminal cases, which involve various sums of money and a number of military units, have been opened,” the prosecutors said.

The most recent case under investigation, announced on Tuesday, involves the embezzlement of 190 million rubles ($6.3 mln) for construction and maintenance work on a seismic monitoring site in Krasnoyarsk Region.

Losses from other frauds, which were uncovered earlier, are estimated at 160 million ($5.5 mln), according to military prosecutors.

Russia ranked 143rd out of 182 countries in the latest edition of the annual global corruption survey published in December by Transparency International.

April 4, 2012: STRATEGY PAGE

Russia announced a new stealthy cruise missile for their heavy bombers and whatever emerges from the effort to develop something to compete with the American F-22 and F-35. The Russian announcement said little more, declaring that details of the new missile were classified. That was probably to avoid embarrassment, as the Russians have been having a hard time completing missile designs that were halted at the end of the Cold War (1991) because there was no more money.

One of these missiles was the Kh-102, a stealthy development of the Cold War era Kh-55. The Kh-102 had been in development for nearly two decades, but most work was halted in the 1990s because of money shortages. Ten years ago, there were reports that work had been resumed. Five years ago some appeared, hanging from a Tu-95 heavy bomber.

 These missiles are upgrades of the Cold War era Kh-55 (AS-15) cruise missile. Five years ago, an upgrade, the Kh-555 appeared. This missile is six meters (19.8 feet), weighs 1.6 tons and has a range of 3,000 kilometers. The 364 kg (800 pound) conventional warhead appears to be a cluster bomb type (carrying bomblets). The missile uses inertial and satellite supplied guidance, and can hit within six meters of its aiming point. Russia says it will use these missiles to attack terrorist bases in foreign countries. There was also a nuclear version, but this does not appear to be in regular service.

The Kh-102 has a new shape, and a radar absorbing skin, to make it more difficult for radar to detect it. Otherwise, the Kh-102 weighs 2.2 tons, but otherwise has the range and payload of the Kh-555. Apparently, the Kh-102 isn't going to replace Kh-555 missiles, but complement it, at least until the Kh-555s are too old to maintain, and are retired. That's a process that could take a decade or more. Currently, Tu-160 and Tu-95MS heavy bombers are equipped to carry a dozen Kh-555 or Kh-102 cruise missiles each. The new fighters would apparently carry one or two of them.

Russia is increasing its Tu-160 bomber force from 16 to 30 aircraft. The Tu-160 "Blackjack" is very similar to the 216 ton American B-1B but never really lived up to its potential. Still, it is the most modern heavy bomber the Russians have. It's a 267 ton aircraft that can carry up to 40 tons of bombs and missiles, for up to 12,000 kilometers. The aircraft can refuel in the air. It originally entered service in 1987, and was built mainly to deliver cruise missiles. Noting the success of the B-1 in Afghanistan and Iraq with smart bombs, the Tu-160s were modified to do the same, in addition to retaining their cruise missile carrying capability.

The Tu-95 aircraft (called "the Bear" in the West) entered service over half a century ago, and is expected to remain in service, along with the Tu-142 variant, for another three decades. Over 500 Tu-95s were built, and it is the largest and fastest turboprop aircraft in service. Russia still maintains a force of 50 Tu-95MSs (a missile carrying version from the 1980s), and fifteen Tu-142s (for maritime reconnaissance). There are dozens of Tu-95s in storage, which can be restored to service as either a bomber or a Tu-142.

The 188 ton aircraft has flight crew (for the Tu-95 version) consisting of a pilot, copilot, engineer and radioman, and an unrefueled range of 15,000 kilometers. Max speed is 925 kilometers an hour, while cruising speed is 440 kilometers an hour. Originally designed as a nuclear bomber, the Tu-142 version still can carry up to ten tons of weapons (torpedoes, mines, depth charges, anti-ship missiles, sonobuoys) and a lot more sensors (naval search radar, electronic monitoring gear). There are two 23mm autocannon mounted in the rear of the aircraft. The mission crew of a Tu-142 usually consists of eight personnel, who operate the radars and other electronic equipment. Patrol flights for the Tu-142 can last twelve hours or more, especially when in-flight refueling is used. Maximum altitude is over 14,000 meters (45,000 feet). The Tu-95MS is designed to carry four or more large cruise missiles.

03.04.2012 TF1 News

De hauts responsables du ministère russe de la Défense sont soupçonnés d'avoir détourné environ 5 millions d'euros, destinés au complexe d'armement nucléaire du pays, a indiqué mardi le ministère russe de l'Intérieur.

"Des officiers du service de sécurité économique du ministère russe de l'Intérieur ont mis à jour un détournement de 190 millions de roubles, destinés au développement du complexe d'armement nucléaire du pays, par des responsables du ministère russe de la Défense", a déclaré le service de presse de ce service.

Selon cette même source, des contrats à hauteur d'environ 6,7 millions d'euros avaient été conclus entre une base militaire et une société privée afin de construire notamment une station de surveillance de l'activité sismique. "Il a été révélé que les travaux (...) avaient été partiellement réalisés pour une somme ne dépassant pas 1,7 million d'euros", a-t-il ajouté.

Des enquêtes pour fraudes ont dès lors été ouvertes contre le commandant de la base, un chef du département technique du ministère de la Défense et contre le directeur général de la société privée. La corruption est un mal endémique en Russie, qui gangrène tous les services de l'Etat.

An-124

MOSCOW, April 2 (RIA Novosti)

Russia's military-transport aviation will use civilian An-124 Ruslan Condor heavy-lift transport aircraft owned by large carriers, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said on Monday.

“Orders will be placed for dozens of aircraft - 60-70 Ruslans,” he said.

It was not immediately clear whether the military will pay for the use of cargo aircraft or simply commandeer them in the interest of “national defense.”

“If necessary, these machines can also work for the benefit of Russia’s security,” Rogozin said without elaborating.

In the future at least 10 Ruslans will be built for the Armed Forces by 2020, Rogozin said.

The An-124, developed by the Antonov Design Bureau in 1982, has a maximum payload of 150 metric tons with a flight range of around 3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles).

The cargo jet is the world's third largest after the An-225 and the Airbus A380.

MOSCOU, 2 avril - RIA Novosti

Il n'est pas nécessaire de créer une Garde nationale en Russie en l'absence de menaces intérieures, estime le rédacteur en chef de la revue russe Défense nationale, Igor Korotchenko.

"A mon avis, il n'existe pas de raisons objectives pour mettre en place une Garde nationale, car le système des ministères de force [Intérieur, Défense, Situations d'urgence et Service fédéral de sécurité, ndlr] est entièrement opérationnel et a déjà fait ses preuves", a déclaré lundi M. Korotchenko à RIA Novosti.

C'est ainsi qu'il commentait une information parue dans les médias selon laquelle une Garde nationale subordonnée au président serait formée en Russie. La nouvelle structure doit intégrer les troupes relevant du ministère de l'Intérieur, les troupes de débarquement, ainsi que des unités faisant actuellement partie des Forces aériennes, de la Marine et de la police militaire. Les médias ont également annoncé qu'un nouvel organe - le Conseil de la défense - pouvait apparaître au sein du Conseil de sécurité russe ou de l'administration présidentielle.

Selon M. Korotchenko, cette information ne reflète pas la réalité, car il n'est pas besoin de réformer la direction actuelle du potentiel défensif russe. D'après l'expert, il serait erroné de retirer les Troupes de débarquement du ministère de la Défense et les Troupes intérieures du ministère de l'Intérieur, car ces formations militaires n'opèrent pas seules, mais en coopération avec d'autres éléments.

"Je ne pense pas qu'il soit nécessaire d'isoler artificiellement ces composantes afin de les réunir en une structure baptisée la Garde nationale",  a conclu M. Korotchenko.

MOSCOU, 2 avril - RIA Novosti

La Marine russe devrait posséder d'ici trente ans des navires modulaires capables de se convertir rapidement en acquérant de nouvelles fonctions, a déclaré dans une interview au magazine Défense nationale le vice-premier ministre russe Dmitri Rogozine.

"Je vous demande de regarder dans une perspective plus lointaine que dix ou vingt ans. Nous voyons des navires modulaires dotés d'armes modulaires (…) comparables aux ensembles de construction Lego", a indiqué le vice-premier ministre en charge du complexe militaro-industriel russe.

M. Rogozine a évoqué pour la première fois le projet de renforcement de la puissance navale russe en février dernier. Selon lui, le document ad hoc sera prêt d'ici juin 2012.

"Imaginez un contre-torpilleur se transformer en corvette par substitution de certains modules. La nouvelle configuration permettra d'augmenter la superficie du pont (…), si bien qu'une corvette pourra avoir les fonctions d'un croiseur", a-t-il expliqué.

La capacité à parer à toute éventualité politique et diplomatique et d'y donner une réponse militaro-technique est le principal garant de notre sécurité, a conclu le vice-ministre.

March 31, 2012: STRATEGY PAGE

Russian leaders admit that NATO and the United States have no intention of attacking them. But Russians do not base their defense strategy just on intentions, but on capabilities as well. As long as the United States and NATO have such overwhelming military capabilities (compared to Russia), then Russia must prepare for the possibility that the intentions could quickly change (for whatever reason) and then the superior capabilities would be a serious threat. It's this kind of logic that produces the hostility from Russia when Eastern European nations join NATO, or Central Asian nations allow the United States to use air bases there.

But by this same logic, Russia approves of NATO operations in Afghanistan, the source of opium and heroin that is causing enormous social problems (and millions of addicts) within Russia. At the same time, there are some serious disputes with other neighbors. China claims much of the Russian far east, Japan claims the Kuril Islands, Canada disputes Russian claims in the Arctic. None of these nations is as strong militarily as the United States, so America gets more attention as a threat because the U.S. could do more damage if it ever came to a fight.

MOSCOW, March 30 (RIA Novosti)

S-400 Triumph air defense missile systems will be deployed in Russia’s Far East before the end of the year, Far East Air Force and Air Defense Force chief Col. Sergei Dronov said on Friday.

The Space Defense Forces are currently equipped with different modifications of the Soviet-era S-300 system.

“We are receiving new S-400 Triumphs this year as part of a modernization program,” Dronov told Ekho Moskvy radio.

He did not say how many systems will be deployed, but Air Force chief of staff Major General Viktor Bondarev said in mid-March that one S-400 battalion was currently being deployed at Nakhodka [Russia’s Far East], a second will be based near Moscow, and a third in the Air Force and Air Defense Force chief command.

The Russian Armed Forces currently have two S-400 regiments, both near Moscow, and a third regiment is to be deployed in the Baltic Fleet.

The S-400 Triumph long- to medium-range surface-to-air missile system can effectively engage any aerial target, including aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise and ballistic missiles at up to 400 kilometers and an altitude of up to 30 kilometers.

The Russian Defense Ministry has said there are no plans so far to export the S-400. It will be produced only for the Russian Armed Forces.

30 mars 2012 Par Europe1.fr avec AFP

La Russie a procédé vendredi au lancement et à la mise en orbite d'un satellite militaire depuis le cosmodrome russe de Baïkonour au Kazakhstan, a annoncé le ministère russe de la Défense.

Lancé par une fusée russe Proton-K à 05H49 GMT, le satellite Kosmos-2479 a été mis en orbite à 12H27 GMT, a indiqué un porte-parole des forces spatiales russes au sein du ministère de la Défense, Alexeï Zolotoukhine, cité par l'agence Interfax.

Le lancement et la mise en orbite de l'appareil "se sont déroulés comme prévu", a-t-il souligné. Le secteur spatial russe a connu une année noire en 2011, cinq lancements de satellites s'étant soldés par des échecs.

March 28, 2012: STRATEGY PAGE

In the past year Russia has trained and deployed its first sniper companies. Within three years each combat brigade will have a company of snipers. These troops will not only be graduates of a sniper course but will all be volunteer (not conscript) troops. As part of their sniper training they will be taught to call in air and artillery strikes. For that purpose they will have special binoculars equipped with laser range finders and GPS. Each sniper company has about a hundred men (four platoons of 25 each). This comes out to 3-5 two-man sniper teams for each of the nine infantry companies in a brigade.

All this is part of the Russian effort to reform their Cold War era armed forces and adopt the best techniques used by the more successful Western nations. For the past year Russia has been selecting the most promising new recruits and sending them to a three month sniper course. Via this, and other recruiting methods, the Russians hope to obtain at least a thousand additional snipers in the next few years.

Ironically, the Russians were large scale and successful users of snipers during World War II and developed many training and operational techniques now used by Western armies. But during the Cold War everything in the Russian military got threadbare and shabby. Too many people were just going through the motions and Russia lost its edge in maintaining a large and capable force of snipers.

The United States has been the most successful user of snipers in the last decade. During that time sniper training in the U.S. Army and Marine Corps has undergone tremendous change. Mostly this is because so many snipers were getting lots of combat experience. That experience comes back to the sniper training schools. Another change has been increasing communication between the three primary centers of sniper training (army, marines, and Special Forces). Each of these schools has long tended to develop in isolation from the others. But now there are more competitions and gatherings that bring together snipers from all three and many valuable exchanges of tactics, techniques, and experience have taken place. Finally, the growth in the number of snipers led to many more new sniper weapons and equipment. This has been driven, in part, by the growth in the number of civilians taking up sniping as a sport. Some of these civilian snipers are former military but most are civilian shooters seeking an edge in their hunting, or simply to develop some new, and challenging, skills.

It was eight years ago that the U.S. Army yet again adopted a successful combat practice from the U.S. Marine Corps. In this case the army began training additional snipers so that army units would have more than three times as many. This was about the same number of snipers the marines have had for a long time.

To make this happen the army has tripled the output of its sniper schools. The army had a five week sniper course, while the marines had a ten week course that was considered one of the best in the world. These schools turn out professional snipers who know how to operate independently in two man teams.

Marine regiments (about the same size as army brigades) then had about three times as many snipers per battalion as did army units. Back then, the army only has six or eight snipers per infantry battalion. The additional sniper training sought to provide one sniper in each infantry squad. There are 27 squads in an infantry battalion.

But both the army and the marines were also taking advantage of the greater number of veteran troops in their combat units and the fact that just about every soldier has a rifle with a scope and has a lot of target practice behind them. In the past, infantry commanders were encouraged to find and designate about ten percent of their men as sharpshooters (sort of sniper lite) and make use of these guys to take out enemy troops at a distance, with single shots. This was a trend that had been growing for over a decade and was becoming a major feature of American infantry tactics. These sharpshooters, especially the ones with combat experience, were the prime candidates for sniper school. The trained snipers, however, also have the special skills required to find the best shooting position and how to stay hidden or get out of harm's way if discovered. Trained snipers have proved to be a powerful weapon in the kinds of battles encountered in Afghanistan and Iraq. The enemy fighters greatly fear the snipers, and the presence of snipers restricted the mobility of enemy gunmen.

Back during the Cold War the Russian army was supposed to have 25-30 snipers per infantry brigade. These men were equipped with specially built sniper rifles. There were also trained snipers in the growing Soviet commando forces and among the KGB (secret police) combat units. But in the last two decades of the Cold War (that ended in 1991) the quality of Russian snipers declined, as did most everything else in the Russian military.

T-90MS offers an upgrade path for the Russian T-90 tank

offering a balanced improvement in firepower, mobility

and protection.

March 29, 2012 Binny Winson – defense update

The centerpiece of the Russian display at Defexpo 2012 is undoubtedly the T-90MS upgrade program developed by the Russian Uralvagonzavod corporation. The T-90MS upgrade was unveiled August 2011 at Nizhny Tagil, Russia following the demise of the T-95 program. It is making its international debut here in New Delhi. India is likely to be the most interested in the the Russian upgrade, put forward by Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport as a possible upgrade path for the Indian ‘Brishna’ (T-90S) tanks.

India is the largest operator of the T-90S, along with Russia. The Indian Army has fielded about 450 of these tanks, with 300 more on order. Other T-90 operators are Azerbaijan, Cyprus (45) and Venezuela (92). Earlier in 2012 it was announced that Algeria has bought 120 of these tanks.Additional 30 were acquired by Turkmenistan. These small deliveries could be the result of the collapse of the Libyan order, which was never fulfilled.

The Indian Army had planned to equip its 59 armored regiments with 1,657 T-90S main battle tanks, 1,000 of which were to be Indian-made. However, production and import of T-90S tanks has been slow, hence, the opportunity to improve the T-90 through the manufacturing line, maintaining the T-90 effectiveness for upcoming years. The T-90MS offers improvements in every important element – protection, mobility and firepower, in addition to improving sustainability and reliability while reducing operating cost. Since the contract was signed back in 2001 the Indian Heavy Vehicle Factory (HVF) in Avadi, Chennai has assembled only 150 T-90S (of a thousand planned). Implementing the T-90MS package will enable future production series to deliver better, more capable main battle tanks instead of gradually obsoleting platforms.

The proposed tank upgrades include improved automotive components, enhanced protection by reactive, passive and countermeasure systems improving the tank’s protection against guided missiles; the firepower enhancements rely on comprehensive modernization of the turret systems, including a new automatic fire control system, stabilized day/night sights and auto-tracking capability, and the use of the 2A46-M5 improved 125mm gun offering better accuracy and reliability, compared to existing 125mm guns. It also has a remotely controlled 7.62mm machine gun.

Automotive improvements include the high efficiency V-92S2F diesel engine and automatic transmission and steering wheel control linkage. The upgrade kit includes attachments for a new type of add-on protection armor, including turret and hull frontal and side reactive panels and slat armor grills protecting the exhaust, filters and sprockets. An aramid liner is also employed to reduce internal damage from splinters and flux in case a penetration occurs.

The T-90MS commanders' new independent panoramic

sight is coupled with an elevated, remotely controlled

weapon station mounting a 7.62mm machinegun.

The tank uses early warning threat sensors and countermeasure to protect the tank over 360 degrees. The system relies on two types of detectors, offering coarse threat detection over 270 degrees (sides and rear of the turret), employing instant multi-spectral smoke screen, while the fine threat detectors are employed over the turret’s frontal 90 degree arc, driving electro-optical countermeasures.

The T-90MS Kalina fire control system comprises improved fire control computing modules and modern,

stabilized optronics.

Another feature contributing to the T-90MS survivability is the separation of ammunition from the fighting compartment. Part of the ammunition is stowed in special compartments separated from the turret by a blast door. The ammunition is manually loaded into the magazines, from where they are automatically served by the autoloader.

The ‘Kalina’ optronics system features three new EO devices – the gunner’s sight has a two-axis stabilized field of view, integrating multiple optical channels including a dual mode (day/night) CCD and thermal channels, a laser rangefinder (LRF) and another laser channel supporting missile guidance. The EO system is coupled with a video processing system, performing automatic target tracking to improve moving target engagement. The commander position is equipped with a new independent panoramic sight featuring two-axis field of view stabilization integrating the daylight, thermal and LRF channels. The panoramic sight also provides target acquisition and control for a new, remotely operated weapon mounted on top. A backup parallel sight fixed on the cannon line of sight and optional peripheral video surveillance system covering 360 degrees of the tank’s perimeter. The optical muzzle reference unit further augments the weapon’s accuracy.