The SBU's capture of former or not-so-former Russian special forces near Lugansk, their interviews and various information that surfaced in the press allowed us to take a fresh look at what was happening in the Donbass and in Russian army. Medialeaks collected what is known about the Special Forces of the GRU, where Evgeny Erofeev and Alexander Alexandrov served/are serving and summarized what the prisoners said.
What is GRU special forces?
Full name: "Divisions special purpose Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Russian Federation» . Tasks: deep reconnaissance and sabotage activities. This is what boys dream about and what Call Of Duty heroes do: special forces climb deep behind enemy lines and run through the forest, collecting information about the enemy’s weapons, destroying their fortified points and communications.
Secret troops
Since no special forces officially existed, in Afghanistan, for example, they were called separate motorized rifle battalions. The GRU is still not mentioned in the names of the formations. Let's say Alexandrov and Erofeev were/are employees 3rd Separate Guards Warsaw-Berlin Red Banner Order of Suvorov III degree special forces brigades . Now no one denies the existence of these troops, but the composition of the units is still classified. The number of troops of the GRU Special Forces is unknown; it is believed that there are currently about 10 thousand of them in the RF Armed Forces.
What is the GRU Special Operations Command famous for?
The most famous operation carried out by the Special Forces was the seizure of the palace of Hafizullah Amin in Kabul in 1979. Due to the irregular nature of combat operations in Afghanistan, GRU special forces were widely used against the Mujahideen. Scout units were assigned to all military formations, thus everyone who served in Afghanistan knew about the existence of intelligence officers. It was in the late 80s that the number of this type of troops reached maximum value. Michele Placido's hero, Major Bandura, in "Afghan Break" is more of a sadist than a paratrooper, but in 1991 it was still impossible to talk about this.
How does the GRU Special Forces differ from the Airborne Forces?
Spetsnaz soldiers are often confused with paratroopers due to the fact that for obvious reasons: for secrecy, the combat uniform of some units of the Special Forces of the GRU of the USSR was the same as that of the Airborne Forces. After the breakup Soviet Union the tradition remains. For example, the same 3rd separate brigade of the Special Forces wears vests and blue berets on the parade ground. Scouts also jump with a parachute, but paratroopers have larger scale combat missions. Accordingly number of airborne troops much higher – 45 thousand people.
What are the GRU Special Forces armed with?
In general, the weapons of special forces are the same as those of other motorized rifle units, but there are several specific technologies. The most famous: the special machine gun “Val” and the special sniper rifle “Vintorez”. This is a silent weapon with a subsonic bullet speed, which at the same time, thanks to a number of design features, has high penetrating power. It was “Val” and “Vintorez”, according to the SBU, that were captured on May 16 from fighters of “Erofeev’s detachment”. However, there is no convincing evidence that such weapons do not remain in the warehouses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Who serves in the Special Operations Directorate of the GRU?
In force high requirements and the need for long-term training, most of the special forces are contract soldiers. Young people who have sports training, are healthy, and have knowledge of a foreign language are accepted for service. At the same time we see that this is completely ordinary people from the provinces, for them service is more good job, may be difficult and dangerous, but in no way a battle for an abstract idea.
Life is not like in the movies
Patriotic movies and bravura stories on TV convince us that special forces soldiers are universal terminators. On a combat mission they can go without sleep for three days, they shoot without missing, they can scatter a dozen armed people alone with their bare hands and, of course, they don’t abandon their own. But if you believe the words of the captured soldiers, then it’s enough large group The special forces soldiers, completely unexpectedly for themselves, were ambushed and, firing randomly, retreated in a hurry, leaving two wounded and one killed on the battlefield. Yes, they are well trained, they can run for a long time and shoot quite accurately, but these are ordinary people who are afraid of bullets and do not always know where the enemy is waiting for them.
Not a word to the enemy
Scouts operate behind enemy lines, where the risk of being captured is quite high; accordingly, soldiers and officers of the GRU special forces must undergo training on how to behave in captivity, and before being sent on a mission, undergo instruction and receive a “legend.” Because these are secret troops, secret mission, then the command, in theory, should have warned the fighters: you will find yourself in captivity, we don’t know you, you came there yourself. It is all the more surprising that, as we see, both Alexandrov and Erofeev were absolutely unprepared for either captivity or the fact that the country and loved ones abandoned them.
SBU torture
It is clear that both (former) special forces soldiers are sincerely shocked that Russian authorities(and even Aleksandrov’s wife) stated that they were not serving in the Russian troops and it was unknown how they ended up near Lugansk. This can be explained by torture, but people who are forced to say something against their will often do not make eye contact, pronounce words slowly and abruptly, or speak in overly correct phrases as if they had memorized the text. On the recording " Novaya Gazeta“We don’t see this. Moreover, their words contradict the version of the SBU, which claims that “Erofeev’s group” was engaged in sabotage, while the prisoners talk only about observation. People who have been forced by torture to say what is needed do not change their testimony so boldly.
Is there Russian troops in Donbass? How many are there and what are they doing there?
The Kremlin consistently denies the participation of Russian Armed Forces units in the conflict in Donbass. The capture of special forces, according to Kyiv, proves the opposite. However, the SBU does not say how much Russian soldiers and units are fighting in eastern Ukraine.
If you study the blogs and interviews of members of the DPR and LPR militia, the picture emerges as follows: a large-scale military operation involving Russian units, if there was, then once at the end of August - beginning of September, when the forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were suddenly thrown back from Ilovaisk, and the front line reached the border of Mariupol. By different information, at the headquarters of the DPR and LPR there are military emissaries from Moscow (just as specialists come from Washington to train officers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine). There is a possibility that on the territory of the self-proclaimed republics there are separate groups military from Russia, but in limited quantities. As the prisoners rightly point out, there are a lot of people here, including real retired officers who want to fight. Aleksandrov and Erofeev say that their tasks included only observation without any sabotage; this does not coincide with either the version of the General Staff of the Russian Federation or the version of the SBU.
The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces is the main intelligence agency of Russia. GI is a new name introduced in 2010 during military reform. Transcript of the GRU of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation - Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The outdated designation GRU is common among people.
The intelligence of the RF Armed Forces rests on the shoulders of this body. The department coordinates subordinate intelligence departments, following the Constitution of the Russian Federation and acting in the interests of the state. Intelligence officers intercept information through personal involvement (conspiracy) or the use of electronics and radios.
History of the organization
In the RF Armed Forces, military intelligence existed back in the USSR (more precisely, its prototype). Based on the GRU of the USSR in 1992, after signing all documents on the collapse military coalition, the main body and its officers went over to Russia. Based on the old management, an updated one was created. The abbreviation GRU (stands for Main Intelligence Directorate) of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces was brought to the official level in 2010 after the reform of the military administration. The change in the name of the body did not affect its tasks.
During its existence, the department participated in many missions. In 2015, employees collected information and conducted a report on the plans of Islamic groups in Central Asia. The merits of the scouts include the destruction Chechen leader militants, information analytics and accession activities Crimean peninsula in 2014, planning attacks in Syria in 2015, helping to establish international contacts.
On present moment The position of the intelligence department can be called positive, since all the intelligence officers have been bought out or exchanged and are in Russia, or on a mission abroad, but at large.
GRU tasks
The set of tasks of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces was determined back in 1992 and has remained unchanged since then. Main goals of the organization:
- information support that benefits political, military, technical or scientific development countries;
- security central authorities RF (President, Ministry of Defense, General Staff) with information necessary for making decisions in the field foreign policy, economics and military relations;
- creating conditions favorable for the implementation of the foreign policy goals of the Russian state.
In practice, these tasks are implemented through the use of intelligence resources: trained personnel, modern technology, knowledge of encryption and other intelligence tools.
Management structure
The body is headed by the General Staff and the Russian Ministry of Defense. The top level in the hierarchy is the President of the Russian Federation, Commander-in-Chief of the army units. The heads of the GRU of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces (or deputies, or acting) must report on their activities primarily to the General Staff.
The vacancy of the chief in the Main Directorate of the General Staff was vacated several times due to the resignation of the previous chief. Since 1992, 6 managers have been replaced. The first to speak was Timokhin E.L., Colonel General. Most subsequent chapters - also colonel generals (except for Army General Korabelnikov).
The most prominent figure among the leaders of the body is considered to be I.D. Sergun, who held the managerial post from 2011 to 2016. During his leadership, the most striking intelligence operations of recent times took place (Crimea, Syria).
The reason for the change of leadership is the death of Sergun. On at the moment The department is managed by Colonel General Korobov, whose biography includes being awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. He was responsible for coordinating the fighting in Syria.
Official information about the structure of intelligence units is not disclosed. According to unconfirmed data, the organization has 21 divisions, of which 13 are main and 8 are auxiliary. Approximate composition:
- EU countries (First Directorate).
- America, Australia, UK, New Zealand(Second division).
- Asia (Third).
- Africa (Fourth).
- Operational intelligence (Fifth Department).
- OsNaz (radio engineering, Sixth Department).
- NATO.
- Special Forces (sabotage department).
- Military technologies.
- War economy.
- Strategic management.
- Information warfare department.
- Space reconnaissance.
Auxiliary departments:
- personnel;
- operational and technical;
- archives;
- information service;
- external relations;
- administrative department.
Among the lower-level departments there is OBPSN - a special-purpose security department.
All departments are managed by the organizational and mobilization center located at the headquarters of the organization. The headquarters address is Grizodubovaya Street in Moscow, where the official office of the head of the department and his council is located. The former headquarters building is located at Khoroshevskoye Shosse, building 76. You can get from one building to another by walking just 100 meters.
Number of intelligence structures
Official information about numerical strength intelligence officers are not disclosed. According to analysts, the number of military personnel in this industry ranges from 6 thousand to 15 thousand people.
The forces of the intelligence department include combined arms military units (military units) - 25,000 people. All of them serve under contract. The department is subordinate to artillery units, special equipment, and a fleet of motor vehicles.
GRU equipment
The appearance of the scouts is given special attention great attention. Official uniform- gray (for officers) or dark blue (for subordinates) overcoats with red and gold design elements. The chief dresses in a black uniform with blue accents.
The modern emblems were developed in 1997. There are small, medium, large emblems that are attached to the chest or sleeve. The big one is only for officers.
Weapon equipment for soldiers is carried out according to army standards. Special units should be equipped with an improved set of weapons - machine gun, knife, pistol, etc. Since the time of the USSR, the GRU weapons have been considered the best.
Personnel training
Officers for the GRU are trained mainly at the Academy of the Ministry of Defense. Leading military personnel are also trained at the Ryazan Airborne School in the field of special reconnaissance. A candidate who wants to enter one of the schools and subsequently become an intelligence officer must have good knowledge foreign languages, high level physical training, excellent health.
Exists additional education at the Academy of the Ministry of Defense - Higher Academic Courses. The structure of the GRU includes two of its own research institutes located in the capital.
Areas of training in higher education educational institution at the Ministry of Defense:
- strategic human intelligence;
- operational-tactical reconnaissance;
- agent-operational intelligence.
From the first year of study, students undertake to maintain state secrets and not disclose the stages of their training.
Since 1992, the direction of development of the department has not changed: the priority tasks remain to improve personnel training, obtain more detailed information, and use new technologies for intelligence purposes. However, the goals of the State Administration are not always fully implemented: information leaks occur, and the collected information does not always reach the top of the authority’s hierarchy.
According to British experts, due to the inconvenient bureaucratic system important information does not even reach the President. In 2016, due to incorrect operation of services information security there was an information leak. The task of the GRU in the future is to prevent such problems.
The second intelligence agency of the Soviet Union was the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR (GRU GSH AF USSR). In addition to conducting strategic and military intelligence, GRU since its formation at the dawn Soviet power was engaged in obtaining military-technical information and information about advanced scientific achievements V military field. Unlike the FSB, the GRU of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces still remains a structure closed to prying eyes, which is not surprising, since the goals and objectives of military intelligence depend much less on political regime country than the goals and objectives of the intelligence services ensuring the internal security of the state.
Organizationally, the GRU of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces consisted of directorates, directions and departments (Fig. 3.4). In addition, the intelligence departments of all military districts, groups of forces and fleets were subordinated to the GRU. The intelligence departments, in turn, were subordinate to the intelligence departments of armies and flotillas. At the division level, GRU structures were represented by reconnaissance battalions. Finally, in almost all military districts there were separate brigades special purpose (special forces), as well as units special purpose(osnaz).
From the point of view of information security itself, the following GRU departments should be highlighted.
· 5th Directorate - operational intelligence, organization of intelligence work at the level of fronts, fleets and military districts. The heads of intelligence departments of military districts were subordinate to the 5th Directorate. The heads of the 2nd directorates of the fleet headquarters also carried out their activities within the framework of the 5th directorate under the leadership of the head of naval intelligence, who had the status of deputy head of the GRU.
· 6th Directorate - radio intelligence. The work of the department was carried out by the forces and means of four departments.
· 1st department (radio intelligence). He was engaged in intercepting and decrypting messages from communication channels of foreign countries. He led units of military districts and groups of forces.
· 2nd department (radio intelligence). Used the services of the same interception stations and carried out surveillance by electronic means over the same countries as the 1st Department. However, the specialists of this department were not interested in the information itself, but in the radiation parameters of radio, telemetric and other electronic systems, used in military tracking and detection equipment.
· 3rd department ( technical support). He was engaged in servicing interception stations, the equipment of which was located in the buildings of Soviet embassies, consulates and trade missions, as well as at separately located interception stations.
Rice. 3.4. Structure of the GRU General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces
· 4th department (tracking). He monitored all the information obtained by the 6th Directorate around the clock. The main task of the department was to monitor the status and dynamics of change military situation in the world. Each officer of this department was responsible for his own observation object (US Strategic Air Command, Tactical Air Command, etc.)
· 9th Directorate - military technologies. Worked in close cooperation with research, design and other institutions and organizations of the military-industrial complex of the USSR. Engaged in obtaining information on the development and use of production technologies military equipment and weapons.
· 10th Directorate - military economy. Analyzed information on the production and sales of military and dual-use products in other countries, as well as issues of economic security.
According to many, in Russia for several years now, in the course of large-scale military reform, the systematic destruction of the GRU has been carried out, specific structure, created at the dawn of Soviet times. The reform, of course, affects other types of armed forces, and not just military intelligence, but it is intelligence that is being destroyed primarily as a result of giving it a so-called “new look.”
Researchers agree that it is absolutely impossible to leave everything as it was, however, analysts have a very ambiguous attitude towards the ongoing reforms. Many consider the indicative fact that 70 thousand square meters The complex of buildings on Khodynka, built for the GRU General Staff, once the second most important and powerful intelligence service after the KGB and FSB, are empty. 9.5 billion rubles were spent on their construction.
What is GRU
GRU GSH stands for the Main Intelligence Directorate, organized under the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. Throughout post-revolutionary period and to this day this body has been the central governing body of the Russian Armed Forces. The GRU reports to the Chief of the General Staff, as well as the country's Minister of Defense. The department is in charge of all types of intelligence, which is carried out in the interests of the Armed Forces. This includes, among other things, reconnaissance:
- space,
- radio-electronic,
- agent
The latter is given priority in the GRU. It is the agents who extract classified materials And the latest designs foreign weapons.
As the emperor said almost 150 years ago Alexander III, Russia has only two true allies - its army and navy. Today, in 50 or 150 years, this statement will remain an axiom. Russia will not be able to exist without these strong and loyal allies, and they will not be strong without developed and powerful military intelligence.
Can the GRU story end?
A Brief History of the GRU
The birthday of the GRU is considered to be November 4, 1918. It was then that the Registration Directorate was formed as part of the Field Headquarters of the Soviet Red Army. The order for its creation was signed by the chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic, who was then Leon Trotsky. He appointed Semyon Aralov, a veteran of Russian intelligence, as the first head of the GRU. This legendary personality was formed in the period before the First World War.
Initially, the GRU was called RUPSHKA - Registration Directorate of the Field Headquarters of the Red Army (Workers' and Peasants' Red Army). The purpose of its creation was to coordinate the efforts made by intelligence services on all fronts and in the armies, obtaining information for the General Staff of the Red Army.
From the very beginning of its activities, the GRU was engaged in:
- strategic and operational intelligence,
- obtaining military-technical information,
- obtaining information about the latest scientific achievements in the field of aircraft.
A few years after its birth, RUPSHKA became the 4th Directorate of the General Staff. IN official documents it was designated as military unit N44388. It was renamed to the GRU General Staff on February 16, 1942 by order of the People's Commissar of Defense. At the same time, serious personnel changes and structural changes took place.
Another major milestone in the history of management development occurred on November 22, 1942. That's when military intelligence By order of the People's Commissar of Defense, she was removed from the GRU. From now on, human intelligence was no longer conducted by the intelligence departments of the fronts, and the department itself began to report to the People's Commissar of Defense, and not to the General Staff of the Red Army.
His main task at that time was conducting human intelligence abroad. First of all, these were the Nazi-occupied territories of the USSR. At the same time, the RU - Intelligence Directorate appeared within the General Staff, whose task was to manage military intelligence.
The legendary structure, which is known to everyone as, appeared already in post-war years. His birth is considered to be 1950. From 1955 to 1991, the GRU was called the GRU General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces. Since 1991 it has received its modern name, i.e. GRU General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. One can only speculate about its structure and numbers, since this is a state secret.
What's happening with the GRU these days?
Despite the top secrecy, some data is still disclosed. In 2009, management leadership was changed to a more accommodating one. As everyone is assured, this was done in order to prevent the complete collapse of the GRU. The reform, however, has rather tragic consequences.
According to known data, the organization before the reform included 12 main departments, as well as 8 auxiliary departments and departments. Currently, key departments have been reduced to a critical minimum, most of which have been liquidated with the dismissal of thousands of specialists. Research and development (R&D) and experimental design (OKR) departments that existed in specialized research institutes departments, known as the 6th and 18th Central Research Institutes.
According to inaccurate data, every second officer was dismissed, and this led to the loss of the opportunities that existed within the department. Thus, out of 7 thousand officers there are currently less than 2 thousand left. The final “cleansing” took place after the resignation of V.V. Korabelnikova, former boss GRU from 1997 to 2009.
Electronic reconnaissance has been almost completely destroyed. As reported The New Times, on site foreign countries there was a 40% reduction in the number of so-called “mining units” within the management. They were responsible for human and strategic intelligence.
Things are also difficult with the training of new personnel, since the training of illegal agents was completely curtailed after the liquidation of the specialized faculty. Professors and teachers of the Military Diplomatic Academy, which previously had three faculties, were dismissed en masse:
- agent-operational intelligence;
- strategic human intelligence;
- operational-tactical reconnaissance.
The faculty involved in training military attaches has also undergone extreme reductions. The analytical apparatus of the GRU was liquidated. Divisions foreign intelligence are gradually transferred to the subordination of the SVR.
Even the most experienced officers are subject to dismissal for fairly formal reasons, for example, due to length of service. The specifics of military intelligence suggest that only experienced ones can become specialists. army officers, and this, of course, leads to the fact that already accomplished military men at the age of 30-35 years come to the GRU, and the older they become, the more they should be valued. The waste of the real “golden fund” of the specific Russian intelligence community is obvious.
Such radical changes have led to the fact that, at present, from a unique strategic instrument in its essence, capabilities, and scale, the GRU was forcibly turned into an amorphous, purely secondary structure. Against the backdrop of such degradation, the next optimization management reform will most likely occur.
Apparently, the Ministry of Defense is relying on the special forces center “Senezh”, which was previously removed from the subordination of the department, which was subordinated directly to the Chief of the General Staff. Astronomical sums are allocated for its development. The Minister of Defense oversees the center; they order non-standard, even exotic, foreign-made weapons and equipment for it. The desire is obvious: something similar to the cinematic American “Delta” is being created. For most analysts, this position of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense causes slight bewilderment, since the place where specialists are trained is also a recreation center for senior management.
GRU is the main intelligence department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Established on November 5, 1918 as the Registration Department of the Field Headquarters of the RVSR.
The Chief of the GRU reports only to the Chief of the General Staff and the Minister of Defense and has no direct connection with political leadership countries. Unlike the director of the Foreign Intelligence Service, whom the president receives weekly on Mondays, the head of military intelligence does not have “his own hour” - a time strictly fixed in the daily routine for reporting to the president of the country. Existing system"marking" - that is, receiving intelligence information and analyzes by high authorities - deprives politicians direct output to the GRU.
Chief of the GRU, Deputy Chief of the General Staff - Korabelnikov Valentin Vladimirovich
Structure of the GRU during the USSR
First Directorate (intelligence)
Has five controls, each responsible for its own set European countries.Each department has sections by country
Second Directorate (front-line reconnaissance)
Third Directorate (Asian countries)
Fourth (Africa and Middle East)
Fifth. Directorate of Operational-Tactical Intelligence (reconnaissance at military installations)
Army intelligence units report to this department. Naval intelligence is subordinate to the Second Directorate of the Navy Headquarters, which in turn is subordinate to the Fifth Directorate of the GRU. The directorate is the coordinating center for thousands of intelligence structures in the army (from district intelligence departments to special departments parts). Technical services: communication centers and encryption service, computer center, special archive, logistics and logistics service financial security, planning and control department, as well as personnel department. Within the department there is a special intelligence department, which is supervised by SPECIAL FORCES.
Sixth Directorate (electronic and radio intelligence). Includes Center space reconnaissance- on the Volokolamsk highway, the so-called “object K-500”. Official GRU intermediary for trade space satellites is Sovinformsputnik. The department includes special-purpose units OSNAZ.
Seventh Directorate (responsible for NATO) Has six territorial departments
Eighth Directorate (work on specially designated countries)
Ninth Directorate (military technology)
Tenth Directorate (military economics, military production and sales, economic security)
Eleventh Directorate (Strategic Nuclear Forces)
- Twelfth Directorate
- Administrative and technical management
- Financial management
- Operational and technical management
- Decryption service
The Military Diplomatic Academy (in jargon – “conservatory”) is located near the Moscow metro station “Oktyabrskoe Pole”.
First department of the GRU (production of counterfeit documents)
Eighth department of the GRU (security of internal communications of the GRU)
- GRU Archive Department
- Two research institutes
Special Forces
These units constitute the elite of the army, noticeably superior in level of training and airborne weapons and "court units". Special forces brigades are a forge of intelligence personnel: a candidate for the “conservatory” student must have the rank of at least captain and serve 5-7 years in special forces. Traditionally, the numerical ratio between the residencies of the GRU and the KGB (now the SVR) was and remains approximately 6:1 in favor of “pure intelligence.”
