EXCLUSIVE: Report On Russian Special Operations Forces In Action
Special Operations Forces (SSO). An exclusive report by Alexander Sladkov.
In 2013, the Russian General Staff announced the beginning of creation of Special Operations Forces, SSO for short. A little later it was announced that these forces were ready for action, not only on Russian territory but also abroad, with the use of weapons and military equipment. We aren't talking about submarines and warships in neutral waters, not about long-range aviation on foreign borders, and not about groups of military advisors in Africa or the Middle East. No, the Special Operations Forces, is a grouping of Spetsnaz exclusively equipped and prepared in special training for conducting operations abroad.
This is the footage of the special operation exercises in the Astrakhan region in Russia. 2 more groups are formed when needed in Kaliningrad and Crimea. SSO on the ground, in the air, and underwater. Large-scale operations using large military units, assault, marine, and transport aviation, attack helicopters, warships and submarines, high speed boats, and reconnaissance artillery systems. The main thing in all these events, are the people, equipped and armed with the latest technology. The goal is simple, to find and destroy that what threatens Russia and the world community. The execution is complex, multi-stage, but error-free.
The special forces are not a Russian invention. It's a classic for the US, Germany, France, and Israel. They've been using their special forces abroad for a long time and with no hesitation, but without much advertising. It's not so much about persuading and negotiating, but about destroying foreign objects and leaders. Western and eastern special forces have affected the politics and economies of other countries for decades. They prepare guerrillas in unstable regions in an effort to create there favorable conditions for their own countries.
The next stage in training is dropping the special forces behind enemy lines. Military transport planes drop the special forces by parachute at night. SSO experts can land from an altitude of 400 meters to 10 km with the use of oxygen equipment. With planning, they glide dozens of kilometers and land exactly where they need to.
Each action of Russian special forces is prepared for carefully both in training and in combat. The most modern techniques are used for finding set targets, from space satellites to drones. The SSO groups know exactly where they need to fly, swim, or walk to.
The Special Operations Forces are people legally fighting in peacetime overseas. They are the descendants of the Soviet deep-espionage soldiers, created in the 1950s under the auspices of the main USSR intelligence agency. 46 companies with 120 soldiers each. Soviet special forces were trained to eliminate commanders and political leaders of aggressor countries, to destroy missile launchers and control posts, strategic aircraft, and nuclear submarines, in order to create panic in the enemy's rear.
Now the SSO has more complex and versatile tasks, both during the exercises and in combat. In this footage a special forces group lands at the operational area using helicopters for transport and cover. And this is a desert operation.
And this is the underwater unit. The SSO divers are entering the operations area through the submarine's torpedo tubes. And this is how they move around and prepare for conducting their underwater operations. And the group withdraws to the enemy's rear on high-speed boats.
Pilots, seamen, artillerymen, rocket-operators, everyone who assists the SSO or already work under the special forces, do this again and again during the exercises and in real combat. To work with the special forces they need mastery of their skills. And such training methods are constantly being improved. Along with the development of tactical combat systems and modern warfare strategy.
Alpha detachment of the KGB became the legendary special forces unit of the 1980s. Then the Vimpel group came out of the shadow of secrecy. The 2 detachments which became the basis of the Russian FSB Special Operations Center. In the 1990s, international terrorism was declared the country's main enemy. Alpha and Vimpel operatives were tasked to fight this evil on Russian territory.
For the Special Operations Forces, the Ministry of Defence determines the targets abroad. Having the most up-to-date equipment and the best weapons in the world, SSO specialists also use camouflage of other armed forces, sports uniforms, and bright skiing suits, any civilian clothing, and appropriate weapons. They are fluent in foreign languages. Special forces have everything to successfully carry out a variety of diverse missions.
Now, during the exercises, assault SSO groups specify locations for the objects to be destroyed. They are attacking it using what they have: anti-tank weapons. They transmit the coordinates of the training objectives to the operations center. In this case, the target is destroyed by assault aircraft, Su-25, and self-propelled artillery using high-precision munitions, Krasnopol, and multiple rocket launchers, BM-30 Smerch. The targets, disguised in buildings of abandoned towns, are destroyed by SSO assault groups, with armored vehicles and aviation support.
The training tasks are carried out in 3 regions at once: Astrakhan region, Kaliningrad, and Crimea. At sea, after completing underwater mining, a group of special forces simultaneously exits the 2 operation areas, and returns to the awaiting submarine. After successful operations in the desert, assault and raid special operations groups return to their areas during day and night conditions, with the assistance of army helicopters.
Special Operations Forces of the Russian Ministry of Defence is one of the important tools of modern warfare. Precise like a laser, powerful like a hammer, but behind these allegories are real people whose power is the love of their country, and the devotion to their people.