Russian Ministry of Defence
Encyclopedia
The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation exercises operational leadership of the armed forces of Russia
.
The Russian Minister of Defence is the nominal commander of all the armed forces, serving under the president of the Russian Federation
, in whom executive authority over the military is vested. In this capacity, the minister exercises day-to-day operational authority over the armed forces. The General Staff, the executive body of the Ministry of Defence, implements instructions and orders of the defense minister. The Russian president is the commander in chief. The State Duma
exercises legislative authority over the Ministry of Defence through the Government of Russia
, which is nominally responsible for maintaining the armed forces at the appropriate level of readiness.
The main ministry building, built in the 1980s, is located on Arbatskaya Square, near Arbat Street
. Other buildings of the ministry are located on Vozdvizhenka Street
, and on the Frunzenskaya embankment.
The current Russian minister of Defence is Anatoly Serdyukov.
The authors of the U.S. Library of Congress Country Studies
' volume for Russia said in July 1996 that:
'The structure of the Russian defence ministry does not imply military subordination to civilian authority in the Western sense. The historical tradition of military command is considerably different in Russia. The tsar
s were educated as officers, and they regularly wore military uniforms and held military rank. Joseph Stalin
in his later years in power frequently wore a military uniform, and he assumed the title Generalissimo of the Soviet Union
. Likewise, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev
was named Marshal of the Soviet Union
. By tradition dating back to the tsars, the minister of defence was a uniformed officer,' with military background (Dmitry Milyutin
, Rodion Malinovsky
) or without (Dmitriy Ustinov
), up until the appointment of Sergei Ivanov in 2001. 'The State Duma
also seats a large number of deputies who are active-duty military officers—another tradition that began in the Russian imperial era. These combinations of military and civilian authority ensure that military concerns are considered at the highest levels of the Russian government.'
In May 1992, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
appointed General of the Army Pavel Grachev
to the post of Minister of Defence. Grachev's decision to side with Yeltsin in the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993
, when the president called up tanks to shell the Russian White House to blast his opponents out of parliament, effectively deprived the Supreme Council (Soviet) of the Russian Federation
of its nominal an opportunity to overturn the president's authority. At least partly for that reason, Yeltsin retained his defense minister despite intense criticism of Grachev's management of the First Chechen War
and the Russian military establishment in general. Finally, Yeltsin's victory in the first round of the 1996 Russian presidential election spurred Yeltsin to dismiss Grachev.
In March 2001, Sergei Ivanov
, previously secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation was appointed defence minister by President Vladimir Putin
, becoming Russia's first non-uniformed civilian defense minister.
Putin called the personnel changes in Russia's security structures coinciding with Ivanov's appointment as defence minister "a step toward demilitarizing public life." Putin also stressed Ivanov's responsibility for overseeing military reform as defense minister. What Putin did not emphasise was Ivanov's long service within the KGB
and FSB and his then rank of General-Lieutenant within the FSB. Such military and security agency associated men are known as siloviki.
As of 2002 there were four living Marshals of the Soviet Union
. Such men are automatically Advisors to the Defence Minister. The Marshals alive at that time were Viktor Kulikov
, Vasily Petrov
, Sergei Sokolov, a former Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, and Dmitri Yazov. Yazov was listed by the American analysts Scott and Scott in 2002 as a consultant to the (former 10th) Directorate for International Military Cooperation
Perhaps the first 'real' non-uniformed Defence Minister was Anatoliy Serdyukov
, appointed in February 2007. Serdyukov was a former Tax Minister with little siloviki or military associations beyond his two years' military service.
. It is commanded by the Chief of General Staff
. U.S. expert William Odom said in 1998 that 'the Soviet General Staff without the MoD is conceivable, but the MoD without the General Staff is not.' Russian General Staff officers exercise command authority in their own right. In 1996 the General Staff included fifteen main directorates and an undetermined number of operating agencies. The staff is organized by functions, with each directorate and operating agency overseeing a functional area, generally indicated by the organization's title.
Military Thought is the military-theoretical journal of the Ministry of Defence, and Krasnaya Zvezda
its daily newspaper.
was the last Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union. General Colonel Konstantin Kobets supported then President of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Boris Yeltsin
during the August coup of 1991. From August 19 until September 9, 1991, Konstantin Kobets was Defense Minister of the RSFSR, though there was no ministry. This post was then abolished.
The first Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation was Boris Yeltsin, who appointed himself to the position by a decree of mid March 1992.
Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are the military services of Russia, established after the break-up of the Soviet Union. On 7 May 1992 Boris Yeltsin signed a decree establishing the Russian Ministry of Defence and placing all Soviet Armed Forces troops on the territory of the RSFSR...
.
The Russian Minister of Defence is the nominal commander of all the armed forces, serving under the president of the Russian Federation
President of the Russian Federation
The President of the Russian Federation is the head of state, supreme commander-in-chief and holder of the highest office within the Russian Federation...
, in whom executive authority over the military is vested. In this capacity, the minister exercises day-to-day operational authority over the armed forces. The General Staff, the executive body of the Ministry of Defence, implements instructions and orders of the defense minister. The Russian president is the commander in chief. The State Duma
State Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
exercises legislative authority over the Ministry of Defence through the Government of Russia
Government of Russia
The Government of the Russian Federation exercises executive power in the Russian Federation. The members of the government are the prime minister , the deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers...
, which is nominally responsible for maintaining the armed forces at the appropriate level of readiness.
The main ministry building, built in the 1980s, is located on Arbatskaya Square, near Arbat Street
Arbat Street
The Arbat is an approximately one-kilometer long pedestrian street in the historical centre of Moscow. The Arbat has existed at least since the 15th century, thus laying claim to being one of the oldest surviving streets of the Russian capital. It forms the heart of the Arbat District of Moscow...
. Other buildings of the ministry are located on Vozdvizhenka Street
Vozdvizhenka Street
Vozdvizhenka Street, , is a radial street connecting Manege Square and Arbat Square in central Arbat District of Moscow, Russia. The street's name refers to a monastery that existed here since 1450 and perished in the Fire of Moscow...
, and on the Frunzenskaya embankment.
The current Russian minister of Defence is Anatoly Serdyukov.
Historical context
Library of Congress Country Studies
The Country Studies are works published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress , freely available for use by researchers. No copyright is claimed on them; therefore, they have been dedicated to the public domain and can be copied freely. Note that not all the pictures used...
' volume for Russia said in July 1996 that:
'The structure of the Russian defence ministry does not imply military subordination to civilian authority in the Western sense. The historical tradition of military command is considerably different in Russia. The tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
s were educated as officers, and they regularly wore military uniforms and held military rank. Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
in his later years in power frequently wore a military uniform, and he assumed the title Generalissimo of the Soviet Union
Generalissimo of the Soviet Union
Generalissimus of the Soviet Union was a military rank created on June 27, 1945 and granted to Joseph Stalin following World War II. It was the highest military rank in the Soviet Union, and Stalin was the only person ever to hold it...
. Likewise, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
was named Marshal of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union was the de facto highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ....
. By tradition dating back to the tsars, the minister of defence was a uniformed officer,' with military background (Dmitry Milyutin
Dmitry Milyutin
Count Dmitry Alekseyevich Milyutin was Minister of War and the last Field Marshal of Imperial Russia...
, Rodion Malinovsky
Rodion Malinovsky
Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky was a Soviet military commander in World War II and Defense Minister of the Soviet Union in the late 1950s and 1960s. He contributed to the major defeat of Nazi Germany at the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of Budapest...
) or without (Dmitriy Ustinov
Dmitriy Ustinov
Dmitriy Feodorovich Ustinov was Minister of Defense of the Soviet Union from 1976 until his death.-Early life:Dimitry Feodorovich Ustinov was born in a working-class family in Samara. During the civil war, when hunger became intolerable, his sick father went to Samarkand, leaving Dimitry as head...
), up until the appointment of Sergei Ivanov in 2001. 'The State Duma
State Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
also seats a large number of deputies who are active-duty military officers—another tradition that began in the Russian imperial era. These combinations of military and civilian authority ensure that military concerns are considered at the highest levels of the Russian government.'
In May 1992, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
appointed General of the Army Pavel Grachev
Pavel Grachev
Pavel Sergeyevich Grachev , sometimes transliterated as Grachov, is a retired Russian Army General and the former Defence Minister of the Russian Federation; in 1988 he was declared the Hero of the Soviet Union...
to the post of Minister of Defence. Grachev's decision to side with Yeltsin in the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993
Russian constitutional crisis of 1993
The constitutional crisis of 1993 was a political stand-off between the Russian president and the Russian parliament that was resolved by using military force. The relations between the president and the parliament had been deteriorating for a while...
, when the president called up tanks to shell the Russian White House to blast his opponents out of parliament, effectively deprived the Supreme Council (Soviet) of the Russian Federation
Supreme Soviet of Russia
The Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR , later Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation was the supreme government institution of the Russian SFSR in 1938–1990; in 1990–1993 it was a permanent parliament, elected by the Congress of People's Deputies of the Russian Federation.The Supreme Soviet of...
of its nominal an opportunity to overturn the president's authority. At least partly for that reason, Yeltsin retained his defense minister despite intense criticism of Grachev's management of the First Chechen War
First Chechen War
The First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...
and the Russian military establishment in general. Finally, Yeltsin's victory in the first round of the 1996 Russian presidential election spurred Yeltsin to dismiss Grachev.
In March 2001, Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is a Russian senior official and statesman. He was Minister of Defence from March 2001 to February 2007, Deputy Prime Minister from November 2005 to February 2007, and the First Deputy Prime Minister from February 2007 to May 2008...
, previously secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation was appointed defence minister by President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
, becoming Russia's first non-uniformed civilian defense minister.
Putin called the personnel changes in Russia's security structures coinciding with Ivanov's appointment as defence minister "a step toward demilitarizing public life." Putin also stressed Ivanov's responsibility for overseeing military reform as defense minister. What Putin did not emphasise was Ivanov's long service within the KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
and FSB and his then rank of General-Lieutenant within the FSB. Such military and security agency associated men are known as siloviki.
As of 2002 there were four living Marshals of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union was the de facto highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ....
. Such men are automatically Advisors to the Defence Minister. The Marshals alive at that time were Viktor Kulikov
Viktor Kulikov
Viktor Georgiyevich Kulikov was the Warsaw Pact commander-in-chief from 1977 to 1989. He has held the rank of the Marshal of the Soviet Union for over 30 years, since January 14, 1977.Kulikov was born into a peasant family and joined the Red Army in 1939...
, Vasily Petrov
Vasily Petrov
Vasily Ivanovich Petrov , in Stavropol Krai. He completed high school in 1935 and studied for two years at a teacher training institute until 1937. Petrov joined the army in 1939 and completed the lieutenant's course in 1941....
, Sergei Sokolov, a former Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, and Dmitri Yazov. Yazov was listed by the American analysts Scott and Scott in 2002 as a consultant to the (former 10th) Directorate for International Military Cooperation
Perhaps the first 'real' non-uniformed Defence Minister was Anatoliy Serdyukov
Anatoliy Serdyukov
Anatoliy Eduardovich Serdyukov is a Russian politician and businessman.He has been the Defense Minister of Russia since February 15, 2007. He is known for launching major reforms in the Russian military....
, appointed in February 2007. Serdyukov was a former Tax Minister with little siloviki or military associations beyond his two years' military service.
Structure
The Ministry of Defence is managed by a collegium of two first deputy ministers, two deputy ministers, and a chief military inspector, who together form the principal staff and advisory board of the minister of defence. The executive body of the Ministry of Defence is the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian FederationGeneral Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is the military staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It is the central organ of the Armed Forces Administration and oversees operational management of the armed forces under the Russian Ministry of Defence.The staff is...
. It is commanded by the Chief of General Staff
Chief of the General Staff (Russia)
The Chief of the General Staff is the chief of staff of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. He is appointed by the President of Russia, who is the commander-in-chief. The position dates to the period of the Russian Empire...
. U.S. expert William Odom said in 1998 that 'the Soviet General Staff without the MoD is conceivable, but the MoD without the General Staff is not.' Russian General Staff officers exercise command authority in their own right. In 1996 the General Staff included fifteen main directorates and an undetermined number of operating agencies. The staff is organized by functions, with each directorate and operating agency overseeing a functional area, generally indicated by the organization's title.
Military Thought is the military-theoretical journal of the Ministry of Defence, and Krasnaya Zvezda
Krasnaya Zvezda
Krasnaya Zvezda is an official newspaper of Soviet and later Russian Ministry of Defence. It was founded on January 1, 1924. Today its official designation is "Central Organ of the Russian Ministry of Defence."...
its daily newspaper.
Composition
The Minister of Defence and his personal aides and advisors, as well as the Collegium of the Ministry of Defence, head the whole structure. An outline structure of the Ministry of Defence includes the groupings below, but this structure was in transition when it was recorded in 2004, with several deputy minister posts being abolished:- Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation
- Federal Service for the Defence Order
- Federal Service for Technical and Export Control
- Federal Special Construction Agency of the MOD
- 11th Directorate of the MOD (function unclear)
- 12th Main Directorate of the MOD12 Chief DirectorateThe 12th Chief Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the former USSR and of the modern Russian Federation The 12th Chief (or "Main") Directorate of the Ministry of Defense (12 GU MO) of the former USSR and of the modern Russian Federation The 12th Chief (or "Main") Directorate of the Ministry...
(nuclear weapons) - 16th Directorate of the MOD
- Hydrometrological Service of the Armed Forces
- Military Inspectorate
- Directorate of Information and Public Relations
- 1st Separate Brigade of Protection of the MOD
- Archives of the Armed Forces (see also Central Archive of the Russian Ministry of DefenceCentral Archive of the Russian Ministry of DefenceThe Central Archive of the Russian Ministry of Defence is located in Podolsk, just south of the city of Moscow.As a departmental archive of Russia, it stores documents of different staffs and offices, associations and formations, units, institutions and military academies of the Soviet Defence...
) - State Corporation for Air Traffic Control
- Central Theatre of the Russian Army
- All-Russian Centre for Retraining Officers
- General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian FederationGeneral Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian FederationThe General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is the military staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It is the central organ of the Armed Forces Administration and oversees operational management of the armed forces under the Russian Ministry of Defence.The staff is...
- directorates, departments, etc
- Russian Ground ForcesRussian Ground ForcesThe Russian Ground Forces are the land forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed from parts of the collapsing Soviet Army in 1992. The formation of these forces posed economic challenges after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and required reforms to professionalize the force...
- Russian Air ForceRussian Air ForceThe Russian Air Force is the air force of Russian Military. It is currently under the command of Colonel General Aleksandr Zelin. The Russian Navy has its own air arm, the Russian Naval Aviation, which is the former Soviet Aviatsiya Voyenno Morskogo Flota , or AV-MF).The Air Force was formed from...
- Russian Navy
- Strategic Rocket ForcesStrategic Rocket ForcesThe Strategic Missile Troops or Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation or RVSN RF , transliteration: Raketnye voyska strategicheskogo naznacheniya Rossiyskoy Federatsii, literally Missile Troops of Strategic Designation of the Russian Federation) are a military branch of the Russian...
- Russian Airborne Troops
- Russian Space TroopsRussian Space Forces (VKS)The Russian Space Forces is the branch of the Russian Military responsible for military space operations. Established on August 10, 1992, following the breakup of the Soviet Union and the creation of the Russian Armed Forces, the organisation shares control of the Baikonur Cosmodrome with the...
- First Deputy Minister of Defence
- Main Directorate for Combat Training of the Armed Forces
- Directorate of Force Management and Security of Military Service
- Army General Nikolay Pankov, State Secretary - Deputy Min. of Defence
- Liaison with Political Power Institutions
- [Main] Directorate for Indoctrination [Political Work, Morale]
- [Main] Directorate for International Military Cooperation
- Directorate for Military Education of the Ministry of Defense
- Directorate of Foreign Relations
- Directorate of Force Management & Security of Military Service
- Directorate of Ecology & Special Means of Protection Min Def RF
- Press Service of the Ministry of Defence
- Flight Safety Service of Aviation of the Armed Forces RF
- Deputy Minister of Defence - Chief of Rear of the Armed ForcesRear Services of the Armed Forces of RussiaThe Rear Services of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is a rear of the Russian Armed Forces. It encompasses mainly the Rear Services' Staff, 9 main and central departments and 3 services.-History:...
- Military medical, trade, transportation, food, clothing, etc
- Deputy Minister of Defence - Chief of Armaments of the Armed Forces
- Test ranges, study centres, Military research institutes etc
- GRAUGrauGrau is a German word meaning "gray" and a Catalan word meaning "grade". It may refer to:* BAP Almirante Grau , a De Zeven Provinciën class cruiser in service with the Peruvian Navy* Grau Käse, Tyrolean grey cheese...
- Main Automotive-Armoured Tank Directorate of the MODMain Agency of Automobiles and Tanks of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet UnionMain Automotive-Armoured Tank Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of the Soviet Union is a department of the Soviet/Russian Ministry of Defence which is subordinated to the Chief of Armaments and Munitions of the Armed Forces, vice-minister of defense...
(GABTU) - Autobase of Ministry of Defence
- Military Registry
- Federal State Unitary Enterprise Rosoboronexport
- Military Industrial Council
- Deputy Minister of Defence - Chief of Construction and Billeting Service
- Main Military Construction Directorate
- Main Quarters Exploitation Directorate
- other Directorates, departments etc
- Lyubov Kudelina, Deputy Minister of Defence for Financial-Economic Work
- Financial-Economic Section of the MOD
- Directorate of Military-Economic Analysis and Expertise
- Financial Inspectorate of the MOD
- Federation of Trade Unions for Civilian Workers of the Armed Forces
- Deputy Minister of Defence - Chief of the Main Department of Cadres [personnel]
- military schools, etc
List of Ministers of Defence
Marshal of Aviation Yevgeny ShaposhnikovYevgeny Shaposhnikov
Yevgeny Ivanovich Shaposhnikov is a Russian military leader and business figure, Marshal of Aviation .Shaposhnikov was born on a farm near Aksay in Rostov Oblast Russia...
was the last Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union. General Colonel Konstantin Kobets supported then President of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
during the August coup of 1991. From August 19 until September 9, 1991, Konstantin Kobets was Defense Minister of the RSFSR, though there was no ministry. This post was then abolished.
The first Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation was Boris Yeltsin, who appointed himself to the position by a decree of mid March 1992.
| # | Picture | Name | Military Rank | Took Office | Left Office | President served under |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Konstantin Kobets | Colonel General Colonel General Colonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories... General of the Army |
August 20, 1991 | September 9, 1991 | Boris Yeltsin Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of... |
||
| Between September 9, 1991 and May 7, 1992 the Russian Federation de jure didn't have its own Minister of Defence. During this period its armed forces were under control of Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union Yevgeny Shaposhnikov | ||||||
 |
Boris Yeltsin Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of... |
No military rank | March 16, 1992 | May 18, 1992 | Himself | |
| 1 |  |
Pavel Grachev Pavel Grachev Pavel Sergeyevich Grachev , sometimes transliterated as Grachov, is a retired Russian Army General and the former Defence Minister of the Russian Federation; in 1988 he was declared the Hero of the Soviet Union... |
General of the Army Army General (Russia) Army General is the second highest military rank in the Russian Federation, inferior only to a Marshal and superior to a Colonel General... |
May 18, 1992 | June 18, 1996 | Boris Yeltsin |
| 2 | Mikhail Kolesnikov Mikhail Kolesnikov General of the Army Mikhail Petrovich Kolesnikov was a member of Boris Yeltsin's administration and briefly served as acting Defence Minister of the Russian Federation after Pavel Grachev was fired by Yeltsin.... |
General of the Army Army General (Russia) Army General is the second highest military rank in the Russian Federation, inferior only to a Marshal and superior to a Colonel General... |
June 18, 1996 | July 17, 1996 | ||
| 3 |  |
Igor Rodionov Igor Rodionov Igor Nikolayevich Rodionov is a Russian general and Duma deputy. He is best known as a hardline politician, and for his service heading the Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation.... |
Colonel General Colonel General Colonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories... General of the Army Army General (Russia) Army General is the second highest military rank in the Russian Federation, inferior only to a Marshal and superior to a Colonel General... General of the Army Army General (Russia) Army General is the second highest military rank in the Russian Federation, inferior only to a Marshal and superior to a Colonel General... in reserve |
July 17, 1996 | May 22, 1997 | |
| 4 |  |
Igor Sergeyev Igor Sergeyev Igor Dmitriyevich Sergeyev was the Defense Minister of the Russian Federation from 22 May 1997 until 28 March 2001... |
Marshal of the Russian Federation Marshal of the Russian Federation Marshal of the Russian Federation is the highest military rank of Russia, created in 1991 following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. It ranks immediately above General of the Army and Admiral of the Fleet , and is considered the successor to the Soviet-era rank of Marshal of the Soviet... |
May 22, 1997 | March 28, 2001 | Boris Yeltsin Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of... , Vladimir Putin Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when... |
| 5 | Sergei Ivanov Sergei Ivanov Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is a Russian senior official and statesman. He was Minister of Defence from March 2001 to February 2007, Deputy Prime Minister from November 2005 to February 2007, and the First Deputy Prime Minister from February 2007 to May 2008... |
Colonel General Colonel General Colonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories... in reserve |
March 28, 2001 | February 15, 2007 | Vladimir Putin Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when... |
|
| 6 | Anatoly Serdyukov | No military rank | February 15, 2007 | Incumbent | Vladimir Putin Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when... , Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint... |
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