Opening statement by Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation General of the Army Sergei Shoigu at Defence Ministry Board Session
21.11.2023
I would like to start with the situation in the special military operation zone.
The Russian Group of Forces continue to engage in active defence, confidently hold positions along the entire line of contact, gradually improving the situation. The enemy units are continuously inflicted with a fire defeat that prevents AFU servicemen from moving forward.
All attempts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to conduct landing operations in Kherson direction were unsuccessful. Thanks to the preemptive and professional actions of Russian servicemen, Marines and Special Operations Forces of the Ukrainian troops suffer enormous losses.
Since the beginning of the month, the enemy has lost more than 13,700 people, about 1,800 units of various weapons and military equipment.
Realising the futility of attempts to break through Russian defence, many Ukrainian servicemen surrender.
In turn, Russian servicemen courageously act in the most difficult conditions of the combat situation and effectively perform tasks.
Russian troops continue to reduce the offensive potential of the enemy in all directions.
Now, we shall move to the agenda.
First, let's consider how the tasks of improving the military training of students are addressed.
During the implementation of the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation, the first stage of work was completed — military training centres will be opened in all constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
Today, nine higher educational institutions bid to open military training centres, including in Lugansk People's Republic.
The number of regions covered by military training will increase to 82, and the number of military training centres will reach 137.
The civilian higher school provides significant support in achieving the goals of the special military operation.
About 20,000 students from more than 400 universities of the country participate in volunteer activities and humanitarian missions.
This year, they donated more than 700 litres of donor blood, which made it possible to provide emergency medical care to 1,400 of Russian wounded servicemen.
More than 600 blood donations were made at Admiral Ushakov Maritime State University, Penza State University, Bryansk State University of Engineering and Technology and Russian State Agrarian University named after K.A. Timiriazev.
More than 10,000 sets of the most modern bandaging materials were transferred to the military units located on the line of contact.
Teachers of military training centres conduct additional classes on military training with government officials and mobilised citizens. In total, more than 20,000 people passed it.
More than 1,000 quadrocopters and FPV-drones have been assembled at universities, which are used with high efficiency in groups of forces.
Students made more than 50,000 square meters of camouflage nets, which will allow servicemen to cover several battalions at once. In this regard, I would like to note Omsk State Technical University, where the students work almost seven days a week.
More than 9,000 children of participants in the special military operation have been granted preferential admission to higher educational institutions.
113 people were admitted to Lomonosov Moscow State University, 123 people to Far Eastern Federal University, and 128 to Don State Technical University.
Students of Russian universities show high patriotism and civic responsibility. 3,933 of them took academic leave to participate in the special military operation. The servicemen are fighting very decently, I think that everyone saw this in the process of reporting last week.
Today, they perform tasks on the front line side by side with experienced fighters, many of them have been awarded state awards and received promotions.
Aleksey Viktorovich Lyalin was awarded the Order of Courage and appointed to the post of reconnaissance platoon commander with the assignment of the military rank of officer, Corporal Aleksandr Sergeevich Meshchersky was awarded the medal For Bravery, Corporal Aleksandr Sergeevich Zavoloka was awarded the St. George Cross of the IV degree. And such examples are far from isolated.
Students at the front line communicate with their relatives, friends, as well as classmates and teachers of their universities during teleconferences. More than 200 people have already taken part in them. This work will continue.
Without a doubt, the courage and bravery of these people deserve the highest praise, and I am sure that they will become a good example for their agemates. I would like to thank all those who are actively involved in this very important work.
Today, we will discuss the prospects for the creation of new military training centres.
The main tasks of this year are aimed at the operational equipping of the Groups of Forces with weapons, hardware, ammunition, and material.
Compared to the beginning of last year, there has been a 4.9-, 3-, and 16-fold increase in the scope of delivery of the main rocket and artillery weapons, armoured vehicles, and unmanned aerial vehicles to the Russian Armed Forces, respectively.
There has been a 12-fold increase in supplying weapons, and a 5-fold increase in supplying precision long-range missiles.
In the interests of the special military operation, the tasks of the state defence order are updated regularly, two or three times a month, and the delivery of the necessary arms and hardware is monitored on a daily basis.
With a twofold increase in the volume of funding for the state order in relation to the basic indicators, the plan for the current year will be fulfilled by at least 98 per cent.
As a result of the additional budget allocations in 2024, the procurement and repair of weapons and military hardware will also be on the rise.
In the current situation, it is necessary to ensure the advance delivery of weapons, military and special hardware to the troops and to increase the production capacity of the defence industry enterprises to produce and repair the most demanded models.
We must be proactive in modernising existing weapons and developing advanced weapons, and then testing them in the special military operation.
It remains a major task to maintain all components of the strategic nuclear forces in constant readiness.
At the end of the meeting, there will be a discussion on the implementation of the 2019-2025 activity plan of the High Command of the Russian Navy.
Since 2018, the fleets and the Caspian Flotilla have seen the addition of more than 130 ships, combatant craft, and support vessels.
Particular attention is being paid to building up naval strategic nuclear forces. The Navy has already received three of the latest Borei-A nuclear-powered submarine cruisers. The state trials of the strategic nuclear-powered submarine Imperator Aleksandr III, assigned to the Pacific Fleet, are about to finish. The portion of current ships within the nuclear triad has reached 100%.
In addition, the submarine force is to receive this year three modern multi-purpose boats equipped with the Kalibr missile systems.
Another important mission is to build multi-mission ships with high-precision missile systems designed to defeat critical infrastructure and maritime targets, including aircraft carriers and surface action groups.
The frigate Admiral Golovko, which is to be equipped with Zircon hypersonic missiles, is currently undergoing state trials.
By the end of the year, the number of long-range precision weapon carriers will exceed 40.
During the special military operation, modern missile weapons proved highly effective. More than 270 missile strikes were carried out, striking more than 330 targets. This year there has been a threefold increase in supplying missiles for the benefit of the Groups of Forces.
The construction of short-range naval vessels will be continued. Two multipurpose corvettes and a small missile ship have joined them. Three more small missile ships and a mine countermeasure ship are due to arrive by the end of the year.
A series of strategic deterrence measures in the Baltic and North seas - Ocean Shield 2023 - have been implemented. Detection and tracking of mock enemy ships were practised, as was live missile and artillery firing.
The Russian navy performed combat duty tasks to deter NATO Naval Forces in the World Ocean. During 2023, there were over 50 sea trips, with a combined distance of over 200,000 nautical miles.
The Finval 2023 exercise was designed to practice deploying the Pacific Fleet all-arms forces to protect the Northern Sea Route.
We continued the practice of joint patrols with foreign vessels in operationally important areas of the World Ocean. In April, joint patrols were conducted with the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, and from July to August, joint patrols were conducted with the PLA Navy (PRC). The elements of manoeuvring, controlling, and interacting were practised.
In general, the intensity of fleet combat training increased 1.2 times this year.
The efforts to reorganise the fleets and the Caspian Flotilla under the direct command of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy are nearing completion. This will introduce unified approaches to planning the deployment and preparation of the Navy in modern conditions, and will make it possible to manage the fleet and fleets more effectively.
The implementation of the Main Command of the Navy's Activity Plan in the current year has increased the combat capabilities of the fleets and the Caspian Flotilla, bringing the level of modern military and special hardware to 74%.
Department for Media Affairs and Information
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