Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on February the 8th, ordered the Southern Military District Forces, as well as the designated Airborne Forces and Military Transport Aviation units of this Military District, to undergo immediate combat readiness checks.
The decision of the President was announced to the media by the Minister of Defence General Sergey Shoygu.
According to the Minister the military forces mentioned above were ordered to be brought to the state of full combat readiness as of 5 o’clock local time on Monday the 8th of February.
The Russian Southern Military District includes the following forces
• 175th Luninets-Pinsk Order of Alexander Nevsky Twice Red Star Headquarters Brigade (Aksai)
• 176th Separate Communications Brigade (Territorial) (Rassvet)
• 11th Separate Guards Kingisepp Red Banner Order of Alexander Nevsky Engineering Brigade (Kamensk-Shakhtinsky)
• 28th Separate Nuclear Biological Chemical (NBC) Defense Brigade (Kamyshin)
• 1270th Separate Electronic Warfare Center (Kovalevka)
• 37th Separate Railway Brigade (Volgograd)
• 39th Separate Railway Brigade (Krasnodar)
• 333rd Separate Railway Pontoon Bridge Battalion (Volgograd)
• Mountain Training Center of the Armed Forces (Baksan)
• 54th Training Center of Intelligence Units (Vladikavkaz)
• 27th Training Center Railway Troops (Volgograd)
58th Army in Vladikavkaz
• 4th Military Base [693rd Motor Rifle Brigade] in Dzhava-Tskhinval (South Ossetia)
• 17th Motor Rifle Brigade in Shali
• 18th Motorized Brigade in Khankala
• 19th Motorized Brigade in Sputnik (Vladikavkaz)
• 136th Motor Rifle Brigade in Dagestan
• 205th Independent Motor Rifle Brigade in Budennovsk
• 67th Air Defense Brigade in Volgograd
• 34th C3 Brigade in Vladikavkaz
49th Army in Stavropol/Maikop
• 8th Motorized Brigade (Mountain) in Borzoi
• 20th Motor Rifle Brigade in Volgograd
• 33rd Motor Rifle Brigade (Mountain) in Novocherkassk
• 34th Motorized Brigade (Mountain) in Storozhevaya-2
• 66th C3 Brigade in Stavropol
• 1st Guards Rocket Brigade in Krasnodar
• 439th Guards Perekop Order of Kurozov Rocket Artillery Brigade (Znamensk) [MRLS]
• 291st Artillery Brigade in Troitskaya
• 21st NBC Defense Brigade Kamyshin
• 175th C3 Brigade in Aksai
• 176th Communications Brigade in Novocherkassk
• 154th ECM Brigade OSN in Izobilny
• Logistics Brigade in Stavropol
102nd Military Base in Gyumri, Armenia
• 76th Motorized Brigade Gyumri, Armenia
• 73rd Motorized Brigade Erevan (Armenia)
• 988th Air Defense Regiment Gyumri (Armenia)
Airborne Troops
• 56th Guards Air Assault Brigade in Kamyshin
• 7th Guards Airborne Division at Novorossiysk
Spetsnaz/Reconnaissance Forces
• 100th Separate Reconnaissance Brigade (Mozdok-7)
• 10th Spetsnaz Brigade in Krasnodar
• 22nd Spetsnaz Brigade in Rostov
Air Force units
4th Air and Air Defence Forces Command
Black Sea Fleet
• 810th Marine Brigade[8]
• 382nd Independent Marine Battalion
• 11th Independent Coastal Defense Missile-Artillery Brigade
• 126th Independent Coastal Defense Brigade
• 1096th Fleet Independent Rocket Artillery Regiment (Coastal Defense)
• 8th Independent Field Artillery Regiment (Coastal Defense)
• 68th Fleet Independent Naval Engineers Regiment
Caspian Flotilla
• 414th and 727th Independent Marine Battalions
• 46th Independent Coastal Defense Missile Artillery Battalion (Surface to Air)
“We must assess these units’ ability to conduct movement for the purpose of concentration, and also check the ability of the air and air defense units to defeat enemy air raids against important military and state facilities,” Sergey Shoygu said.
Since the war in Georgia during the Summer of 2008 Russia has been testing the capabilities of its troops in the region in a regular base.
The Russian leadership is mostly interested to test the combat readiness of its airborne units in the region such as the 56th Guards Air Assault Brigade and the 7th Guards Airborne Division as well as the 708th Military Transport Aviation Regiment in Taganrog.
The ongoing civil war in Syria and the direct involvement of Russia in this war with limited ground forces such as artillery, small number of T-90A main battle tanks, reconnaissance drones and special forces, might not be the last word of Russia in Syria’s war.
In the near future Russia might have to send quickly to Syria new fresh troops.
These troops like the Iranians do, might have to be deployed immediately to the different fronts of the Civil war using the nearests Syrian airports.
Therefore the test of the combat readiness of the two airborne Divisions of the Southern Military District is essential for the evaluation of the potential Russia plans for a new more dynamic and more massive military intervention in Syria.
Image Sourced: Sputnik