Among the main and central departments of the military department there are leaders in secrecy. These include the 9th Central Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, colloquially referred to as the "nine". From 1987 to 1993 it was directed by Hero Socialist Labor Lieutenant General Oleg Baikov. Behind him are unique construction projects - combat starting positions, control and communication lines for the missile forces, objects of the anti-missile attack system. He led the 101st Directorate of Special Construction (Komsomolsk-on-Amur), served as Deputy Commander of the Baltic Military District for the Construction and Quartering of Troops, and First Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of Special Construction.

- Oleg Alexandrovich, in March 1987 you were appointed head of the 9th Directorate of the USSR Ministry of Defense. Was it easy to delve into new problems? What do you remember?

“At the request of Saddam Hussein, we built a closed command post. The Americans found out its location, used artillery, aircraft, cruise missiles, but the special object survived”

- It was quite easy to delve into management problems, because I built just such objects. What stood out in particular was the very high level secrecy. All control objects are regime. Therefore, the places of their construction, conditional and actual names, degree of protection, level of burial, habitability, autonomy, strength characteristics and design features secret, state and military secret. Of course, at the present time, when intelligence capabilities have increased dramatically, especially aerospace and electronic, it is not easy to hide all this data. But in our “nine” there is a golden rule of fortification: the best defense is complete concealment.

In this sense, the administration represented, as it were, a small state, living by its own rules. One example. Marshall arrives Soviet Union Viktor Kulikov. He must get out of his car and transfer to the car of the 9th department. The marshal grumbles with displeasure that, they say, you are fooling around with nonsense, you are ill with bureaucracy, you forgot, they say, that I am a marshal, a light obscenity slips through. I show him the sentry at the post - he will not open the gate and will not let someone else's car through. And I add: you yourself approved these rules. “Okay,” Kulikov surrenders and obediently transfers to our transport ...

- So what, in fact, does management do and why is there such an aura of mystery around it?

- Speaking in the "rough language" of documents, it deals with special fortifications.

Here it is necessary to make a small digression. The most ancient military tradition of our army is to protect the commander and provide him with conditions for leading the troops. This is still with us, as they say, since the time of "The Tale of Igor's Campaign". It is clear that with the improvement of the forms and methods of armed struggle, this function also underwent changes. When nuclear weapons appeared in the middle of the last century, they decided to create these same fortifications. On April 22, 1955, according to the tradition of those times, a joint Decree of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR appeared, which dealt, in particular, with this. And for the specific implementation of the idea in practice, on May 4, 1955, the then Minister of Defense of the USSR Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov issued an order to create the 9th Directorate, which was entrusted with the functions of the customer for the design and construction of such structures. Later, by the directive of the Chief of the General Staff of May 13, 1955, the number was determined by the Directorate, it is subordinate to the Deputy Minister of Defense for the construction and quartering of troops.

- We are talking about in-depth command posts that will be used in case of war. But many of our control units are already fifty years old, and the potential enemy's nuclear weapons have changed significantly: their power, accuracy, and damaging factors have increased.

- Since its inception, the 9th Directorate has been in constant rivalry with the means of destruction of a potential enemy, this can be compared with the competition between the “shield” and the “sword”. I can say that hundreds of special exercises and tests were carried out in order to make the command posts feel safe. For this, the latest scientific discoveries, materials, mechanisms, and new technologies are used.

But it is important not only to build powerful facilities, but also to equip them with appropriate equipment. We have achieved that the life support systems of closed command posts can freely operate under conditions of powerful seismic and explosive effects, with significant overloads, accelerations, displacements, burning electromagnetic pickups, high temperatures and high radioactivity environment. Even the latest submarines did not have such equipment, and we used it to the fullest.

Of course, in this competition the “sword” sets the tone, and here it is very important to quickly respond to changes in the damaging factors. Time becomes the primary factor. Therefore, in close cooperation with the designers, we have developed new fortification structures of prefabricated-monolithic type, as they say in the instructions, "high factory readiness." Such armored and concrete "Lego", which allows to reduce the time and reduce the cost of the construction of objects.

So be calm, our fortifications are not some ancient bunkers buried in the ground, but modern formidable command posts frozen in constant combat readiness.

- I remember that during the years of “perestroika and glasnost”, the locations of many defense facilities were declassified, and “guides” on them were printed in newspapers. Did this affect the institutions and units of the "nine"?

- Unfortunately, it did. The system of protection of military and state secrets was destroyed. Everything that was carefully and skillfully hidden from prying eyes was rude and cynical, sometimes demonstratively deciphered and revealed. You will remember that the then media were filled with information about the geography and purpose of top secret objects, just about, "guides" on them were printed. Unfortunately, no one answered for this.

A very difficult period for us. With the hasty withdrawal of troops from the countries participating in the former Warsaw Pact, the fundamental foundations of the current system of command and control became the property of "wide circles of the democratic public". In addition, special fortifications on the territory of the former Soviet republics were not dismantled or destroyed - information about them also went for a walk around the world.

“But it didn’t get any easier after that. Under Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, the 9th Directorate was generally merged with signalmen ...

- Then they tried to save money and earn money on everything. Thank God it's over now. Now a new period has begun for management. By the way, when it was discussed whether it was necessary to resume its activities, one of the military leaders expressed doubts about this. Like, a lot has already been blabbed. But he was given this argument: to control the armed forces of Iraq, we built a closed command post at the request of Saddam Hussein. The Americans found out its location, used all their capabilities (aircraft, cruise missiles, artillery), but the special object survived. And this circumstance played a role in the resumption of the activities of the department.

– Where else, in what countries have we built such closed control posts?

- In fact, in many states. During my time, they built in Poland and Bulgaria, modernized an object in Hungary. I must say that the Bulgarian leadership was very attentive to the construction of special fortifications, asked for help, and I had to fly there very often. In the mountains they created a powerful, well-closed checkpoint.

Memorable work in Hungary. A helicopter with our delegation crashed there, killing five generals. Among them is Colonel-General Vladimir Shutov, Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff, who was in charge of closed command posts. I was also supposed to fly in this helicopter, but the pilot, lieutenant colonel, apologized and said there were no seats. And I flew in another helicopter, at the helm of which was the captain. He was happier and luckier.

- There is such a bike in the Ministry of Defense. Fulfilling the instructions of the chief to find a room for a billiard room, the officer went down to the basement of the house and began to inspect the premises. He opens the door, and there is the entrance to the subway, trains under steam and a sentry in the rank of ensign. Is this also an object of the 9th department?

- No, it's a joke. It is impossible to get to our object so easily. Although the "nine" is not only engaged in the creation and operation of facilities, but also provides transportation, safe delivery of the leadership to the command post. This can be done both in the subway and in other ways. We acted as a customer for the manufacture of special vehicle, which could deliver leadership even to the area on which a nuclear strike was inflicted ... By the way, in Soviet times, special shelters were erected for the political leadership of the country, families, and even for sick members of the Politburo, a special medical institution was built on the same principles as specialized fortifications. We must pay tribute, they trained a lot at our facilities. Starting with the first person of the state, they came in the established order and worked out the necessary skills. They were not lazy and not shy, they understood the responsibility for the fate of the Fatherland.

- You had a chance to meet with many famous military leaders and politicians. Who is the most memorable?

- Highly interesting person was the Minister of Defense of the USSR Marshal of the Soviet Union Dmitry Fedorovich Ustinov. He, apparently, since Stalin's times worked at night. The person is very accessible and specific - no unnecessary bureaucracy. When I was deputy commander of the troops of the Baltic Military District, we had dachas near Jurmala. It sounds loud, but in fact there are 400 such miserable houses. Wherever they turned, they could not get money to repair them. Dmitry Fedorovich, having heard about our difficulties, asked us to write an appeal addressed to him. I immediately, as they say, on the "knee" composed a document in which I also asked for money for the construction of a new building in the district sanatorium. He imposed a resolution - and that's it! He had fantastic prestige.

The same workaholic was the Chief of the General Staff Marshal of the Soviet Union Sergei Fedorovich Akhromeev, he also slept three or four hours a day. He was very obliging and educated. If he invited me to his place, then five minutes before the appointed time he himself went to the reception room, called to the office. And while he did not delve into the problem, he did not let go. Our management singled out, instantly responded to all our requests. Some "jealous colleagues" called us his favorites.

– But there is also a spot on this brilliant background – the construction of the “foros fortress” for Gorbachev. The country was falling apart, and you were building a golden palace there ...

You are a little confused here. Indeed, the 9th Directorate acted as the customer for the construction of the Zarya facility, which was the dacha of Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev. But then he was the President of the USSR, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, and we built the "Foros fortress" in accordance with his position and ranks. It was the residence of the first person of our state, and everything here had to be at the highest level.

How did you come to such a decision? In the summer of 1985, the Gorbachevs rested at Brezhnev's Crimean residence in Oreanda. There was a large complex of houses and dachas for recreation and work, houses for guests, including those for the highest party and statesmen. However, Gorbachev and especially his wife did not like the rest. It was decided to create a new residence - near the village of Foros.

In 1986, construction work began and was carried out with great scope and intensity. At that time, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR, Colonel-General Nikolai Chekov, did not have an object more important. Why Chekov, the Minister of Defense of the USSR, Marshal of the Soviet Union Dmitry Yazov, did not have a more important construction site than the Zarya facility. Marshal delved into all the problems of construction, regularly flew to Foros. Marble was transported on his private plane for finishing the dacha. Marshal Yazov, not without irony, called Colonel-General Chekov "foreman", and called himself "senior foreman."

- Have you been there often?

- Didn't get out. The main attention was paid to the "recreation area", where a beautiful three-story palace, lined with the best varieties marble and covered with aluminum tiles specially designed for this building. Three military plants received an order for it - in Leningrad, Riga and Moscow. The use of ordinary tiles in seismic Crimea was prohibited. Decoration Materials also brought from Italy, bathroom tiles - from Germany.

Nearby there was a guest house, an outdoor pool, sports grounds. On the ground floor there is a cinema hall. The economic zone included garages, a boiler room, storage facilities, buildings for security workers, a communications center and many other structures that ensured the life of the facility.

The area was not only seismic, but also landslide. Therefore, all structures were placed on solid bored piles, which rested on the rock. To protect the main palace from constant and strong winds, we, with the help of explosions, went deep into the mountain standing here, making it a cover. In part, it also became a disguise for the "Foros Palace". From the side of the mountains, the first and basement floors are not visible - it seemed that a modest cottage was standing by the sea.

Gorbachev closely followed the work, but mainly from photographs and models. But Raisa Maksimovna flew to Foros many times, forcing the already built parts of the palace to be redone. The project was constantly supplemented with new and expensive details: a summer cinema, a grotto, a winter garden, covered escalators from the main palace to the sea, etc. The panel in the pool was made of semi-precious stones…

One of the newspapers wrote: “In the 20th century, only two miracles of architecture were built on the southern coast of Crimea - the Livadia Palace of Emperor Nicholas II and Gorbachev's luxurious villa in Foros with the revolutionary name Zarya.

- Was it hard to look at this "feast during the plague"?

Yes, it's difficult and incomprehensible. But I do not consider the Foros construction site a dark spot on the reputation of the 9th Directorate. We were following orders. I guess it's a stain on my conscience former first communist of the country, who proclaimed modesty, but lived in a completely different way. This discrepancy between words and deeds basically destroyed our country.

- During the GKChP, Gorbachev was really arrested there and, according to him, he turned out to be a Foros prisoner?

- Nonsense. Nearby, in Mukhalatka, our department has already built a special command post for him. Half an hour on a regular bus - and all power in the country is in his hands.

- Do you have any comments on current state"nines"?

- No, I think: now the management is in good hands, it is developing successfully.

Ministry of Defence Russian Federation is the state body responsible for defense policy and defense activities in the state.

Historical digression

The Russian state appeared and developed in a difficult environment. That is why almost immediately, with the advent of the army, the need arose for a single body responsible for conducting various military activities, as well as command and control. The situation changed in 1531. It was then that the Discharge Order (or Discharge) was created. The competence of this body was the recruitment of rati and providing it with supplies. Later, the interests of the Discharge also included the construction of fortresses and security lines. In addition, the Discharge Order carried out command and control of troops on the southern outskirts of the state. During the second half of the 16th, as well as the entire 17th centuries, the Discharge Order continued to manage the military affairs of the state.

The situation changed only at the beginning of the 18th century, when the reforms of Peter I affected almost all spheres of life. Russian state. Naturally, they did not bypass military affairs either. Thus, the Discharge Order was replaced by the Military Collegium, which performed essentially the same functions with the only difference that the time of the Tatar raids on Russia had passed, and special attention was no longer required to the southern borders of the state. It was under and thanks to the Military Collegium that Russian weapons won glorious victories over Turkey, Sweden, Poland and Prussia, annexing vast territories to the country.

AT early XIX century, a special manifesto of Emperor Alexander I was published. According to it, the Military Collegium was abolished. It was replaced by the Ministry of the Army. Six years later, in 1808, this Ministry was reformed into War Department with the same functions and powers.

The Patriotic War of 1812 marked a new era in military history. The difficult situation on the battlefields with France required a radical change in the War Ministry in accordance with the new requirements, which was carried out in the same year. Due to changes in the structure of the ministry, a number of departments were formed: engineering, inspection, artillery, audit, provisions, medical and commissariat. Separately, it is also worth mentioning the ministerial council and the office, which were not part of any of the departments, but were an integral part of the ministry.

In 1815, for a short period of time (about a year), the Russian War Ministry temporarily became part of the General Staff. However, this way of organizing the management of military affairs quickly proved to be untenable.

After 20 years, it was the turn to unite the General Staff and the War Department again. At the same time, this time the General Staff became part of the latter. However, no qualitative changes in the structure of the War Ministry took place for another 24 years. The Crimean War changed everything, during which the Russian army suffered serious losses. The backwardness of the Russian army in technical and organizational aspects became obvious.

In 1861, Emperor Alexander II appointed Field Marshal D. A. Milyutin Minister of War. It was Milyutin who initiated the extensive military reform in the state, which became like a fresh breath of air for the army, which had barely recovered from the defeat. During the reform, a territorial system of military administration was introduced, which manifested itself in the creation of military districts on the territory of the country. Conscription was also introduced for all classes, which solved a number of problems with the recruitment of the army. A separate item was also the adoption of new small arms.

The military reform of D. A. Milyutin was also reflected in the structure of the Military Ministry. So, as of 1870, it included: the imperial main apartment, the General Staff, the office of the Minister of War, the military council, as well as the main departments (artillery, military educational institutions, Cossack troops, quartermaster, engineering, military-judicial and military-medical).

However, Russia did not have to take advantage of these military reforms for long: during the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-1905, its shortcomings were revealed and, if for the 1870s it was quite modern, then by the beginning of the 20th century it was completely outdated. For more effective management of the army during the Russo-Japanese War, the State Defense Council was created, which was abolished in 1908. Also followed by a series of measures designed to seriously reorganize the army Russian Empire, but it was not possible to complete them.

Ministry of Defense at the present stage

On March 16, 1992, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation was established. This federal agency is responsible for public policy in the military sphere, as well as management in the field of defense.

In difficult conditions, the Ministry of Defense managed to preserve the Armed Forces, as well as ensure their development and equipping with new types of equipment. Since the beginning of the 2000s, the situation began to improve. The same period was marked by a number of major changes in the structure of the Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. From 1991 to 2007, six people were replaced as Minister of Defense (B. N. Yeltsin, P. S. Grachev, M. P. Kolesnikov, I. N. Rodionov, I. D. Sergeev, S. B. Ivanov).

In 2007, after the appointment of A. Serdyukov to the post of Minister of Defense, the military reform began, which was supposed to completely change the Russian Armed Forces and significantly modernize them. The military reform included:

1. The abolition of military districts and their replacement by operational strategic directions. So, instead of six military districts, four directions were formed: "Center", "East", "West" and "South".
2. The liquidation of such operational-tactical units as divisions and corps and the transition to the brigade structure of the Armed Forces.
3. Widespread involvement in the life support of the army of civilian specialists (for example, civilian cooks in the canteen).
4. Deep reform of the system of military educational institutions.
5. Substantial mitigation of the conditions of military service for conscripts (for example, permission to use telephones, running in sneakers instead of army boots, etc.).
6. Transfer to the brigade system of the Air Force.
7. Reduction of military command and control.
8. The beginning of a large-scale process of rearmament of the army.

However, this reform was not completed. In 2012, instead of Anatoly Serdyukov, Sergei Shoigu was appointed Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation. His name is associated with the beginning of a qualitatively new period in the history of the Russian Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defense in particular.

Structure of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

Today, the Russian Ministry of Defense is a complex, but very harmonious and well-organized structure. The main structural units of the Ministry are: the General Staff of the Armed Forces, the Main Directorates and Services, the Central Directorates, the Economics and Finance Service, the quartering and accommodation services, the apparatus, the main commands, the commands and the press organs of the Ministry of Defense.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is the central body of the military administration of the Ministry of Defense, as well as the main body exercising operational control of the Armed Forces. It consists of the following departments:

1. The Main Operational Directorate is an organ of the General Staff responsible for planning military operations at various levels.
2. The Main Directorate (it is also the Main Intelligence Directorate) is the body of the General Staff responsible for conducting foreign intelligence.
3. The Main Organizational and Mobilization Directorate of the Ministry of Defense has as its function the conduct of mobilization activities on the territory of the country, and also deals with issues of preparation for possible hostilities.
4. The Military Topographic Directorate is an organ of the General Staff that provides topographic support for the army (for example, maps or terrain plans).
5. 8th directorate - the directorate responsible for encryption, decryption, electronic intelligence.
6. The operational training department carries out operational planning of actions.
7. Management of construction and development of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) system.
8. The National Defense Control Center of the Russian Federation - serves as the main command post for the General Staff.
9. Military Band Service.
10. Archive service.
11. Military Scientific Committee.

The central departments within the Ministry of Defense of Russia are represented by the following structures:

1. The Central Directorate of Military Communications, which is the representative of the Ministry of Defense on land, air, river and railway routes.
2. Central Automobile and Road Administration.
3. The Central Food Administration, which provides the Armed Forces with food.
4. Central Administration of Rocket Fuel and Fuel.
5. Railroad Command.
6. Central ware management.
7. Office of the Chief of Environmental Security.
8. A single center for ordering and deliveries of the rear.
9. Veterinary and sanitary service.
10. 9th Central Directorate - this directorate ensures the functioning of special facilities at the disposal of the Ministry of Defense.

The quartering and accommodation service carries out the resettlement of the personnel of the Armed Forces, as well as solving a number of housing problems. This service has the following divisions:

1. Directly service of quartering and arrangement.
2. Department of Arrangement of Troops.
3. Office for the implementation of housing programs.
4. Main apartment management department.
5. The Central Organizational and Planning Department of Capital Construction, which organizes the construction of new houses for military personnel and their families.

The Economics and Finance Service provides the personnel of the Armed Forces with monetary allowances, and also performs all functions related to finance. Subdivided into:

1. Main Financial and Economic Department.
2. Labor Department and wages civilian personnel.
3. Department of Accounting and Reporting.
4. Department of financial planning.

The Service of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (Apparatus) includes the following structures:

1. Main Directorate of International Military Cooperation.
2. Office for monitoring the implementation of contracts.
3. Main Legal Department.
4. Office of the Department of Defense.
5. Financial inspection.
6. Office of the press service and information.
7. Office.
8. Reception.
9. Apparatus Expert Center.
10. Economic management.
11. Office of Inspectors General.
Airborne Troops and Strategic Rocket Forces.

The press organs of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are represented by such periodicals as: "Military Historical Journal", "Warrior of Russia" and "Red Star".

Conclusion

Today, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is a powerful body capable of promptly exercising military control in the country. It makes no sense to prove that the power and strength of the army lies precisely in the ability to control this force. The structure of the Ministry of Defense is arranged in such a way as to make the management of the army as clear and precise as possible. This is helped not only by the strict selection of staff for the Ministry, but also by new technologies.

The control system of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is constantly being improved. The experience gained as a result of the hostilities in Syria is analyzed in every possible way, systematized and taken into account when planning further actions of the army. Another important task assigned, however, not only to the Ministry of Defense, is the fight against international terrorism, which aims to inflict enormous damage on the whole world.

Nevertheless, in such a difficult international situation, the Russian Ministry of Defense continues to fulfill its direct duties with honor and dignity and to fulfill them with great success, and the efficiency of its work is very high. Based on all this, of course, I would like to conclude that with the beginning of the 2010s, the long-awaited period of the revival of the Russian Army began.

If you have any questions - leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them.

Military license plates have their own specifics. Many people mistakenly take the code on them for the code of the region of Russia. This error causes a special resonance in cities where law enforcement operations are being carried out (as in Moscow after the 2011 State Duma elections), the population begins to spread rumors about the arrival of military equipment from one region or another.

In fact, the code of the military car number indicates belonging to certain branches and types of troops, units and formations, main and central departments of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. For example, code 15 means that automotive equipment belongs to the Ministry of the Interior. Below is a table of codes for license plates of military vehicles:

Information taken from the site