| Spetsnaz GRU | |
|---|---|
 The Spetsnaz GRU logo | |
| Active | 1949–2012, 2013–present |
| Country |
|
| Branch | |
| Type | Special forces |
| Size | Classified[1] |
| Part of |
|
| GRU Headquarters | 76 Khoroshyovskoe shosse,Khodinka,Moscow |
| Patron | Saint Alexander Nevsky |
| Mottos | "Only the stars are above us" («Выше нас только звёзды»)[2] |
| Mascot | Bat |
| Engagements | |
Spetsnaz GRU, formally known asSpecial Forces of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, (Russian:Части и подразделения специального назначения Главного управления Генерального штаба Вооружённых сил Российской Федерации) is thespecial forces (spetsnaz) of theGRU, the foreignmilitary intelligence agency of theArmed Forces of the Russian Federation.
TheStavka began preparing special-purpose (OSNAZ) groups to serve in the GRU in 1937 – training personnel for special-purpose radio units at the engineering radio-technical department of theBudyonny Military Electro-Technical Academy inLeningrad.[3]
The Spetsnaz GRU, the firstspetsnaz force in theSoviet Union, formed in 1949 as the military force of theMain Intelligence Directorate (GRU), the foreign military-intelligence agency of theSoviet Armed Forces. The force was designed in the context of theCold War to carry outreconnaissance andsabotage against enemy targets in the form ofspecial reconnaissance anddirect-action attacks. The Spetsnaz GRU inspired additionalspetsnaz forces attached to otherSoviet intelligence agencies, such asVympel (founded in 1981) and theAlpha Group (established in 1974) – both within theKGB.
The concept of using special forces tactics and strategies in theSoviet Union was originally proposed by the military theoristMikhail Svechnykov, who envisaged the development ofunconventional warfare capabilities in order to overcome the disadvantages that conventional forces faced in the field. Svechnykov was executed during theGreat Purge in 1938, but practical implementation of his ideas was begun byIlya Starinov, dubbed the "grandfather of thespetsnaz".[4]
Following the entrance of the Soviet Union intoWorld War II, basic forces dedicated to acts ofreconnaissance andsabotage were formed under the supervision of the Second Department of theGeneral Staff of the Soviet Armed Forces, and were subordinate to the commanders ofFronts.[4]
The primary function of Spetsnaz troops in wartime was infiltration/insertion behind enemy lines (either in uniform or civilian clothing), usually well before hostilities are scheduled to begin and, once in place, to commit acts of sabotage such as the destruction of vital communications logistics centers, as well as the assassination of key government leaders and military officers.[citation needed]
Spetsnaz GRU training included: weapons handling,fast rappelling, explosives training, marksmanship,counter-terrorism, airborne training,hand-to-hand combat, climbing (alpine rope techniques), diving, underwater combat, emergency medical training, anddemolition.
The situation was reviewed after the war ended, and between 1947 and 1950 the whole of theMain Intelligence Directorate (GRU) was reorganized.[5] The first "independent reconnaissance companies of special purpose" were formed in 1949, to work fortank andcombined-arms armies, which were tasked to eliminate amongst others enemynuclear weapons systems such as theMGR-3 Little John andMGM-1 Matador.[5]
In 1957, the first Spetsnaz battalions were formed under the GRU, five to operate beyond the 150–200 km range of the reconnaissance companies. The first brigades were formed in 1962, reportedly to reach up to 750 kilometres in the rear to destroy U.S. weapons systems such as theMGM-52 Lance,MGM-29 Sergeant, andMGM-31 Pershing.[5]
Two 'study regiments' were established in the 1960s to train specialists and NCOs, the first in 1968 at Pechora nearPskov, and the second in 1970 atChirchik nearTashkent.[6] According to Vladimir Rezun, a GRUdefector who used the pseudonym "Viktor Suvorov", there were 20 GRU Spetsnaz brigades plus 41 separate companies at the time of his defection in 1978.
The first major foreign operation of the unit came in August 1968, when Moscow decided to crack down on thePrague Spring and move the troops ofWarsaw Pact countries intoCzechoslovakia. The Spetsnaz GRU was tasked withcapturing thePrague Airport. On the night of 21 August, a Soviet passenger plane requested an emergency landing at Prague Airport, allegedly due to engine failure.[7][8]
After landing, the commandos, without firing a shot, seized the airport and took over air traffic control. At the same time, other Spetsnaz GRU units that had infiltrated into Prague a few days before the operation seized control of other key city points.[7][8]
In December 1979, the undercover Spetsnaz GRU unit codenamed "Muslim Battalion" participated inOperation Storm-333, the successful mission toassassinateHafizullah Amin, the President ofAfghanistan, and to capture Amin'sresidential palace which triggered theSoviet–Afghan War.[7][8]
Most of Spetsnaz GRU's operations remain classified even after thedissolution of the Soviet Union. It is believed the special forces had participated in operations in more than nineteen countries around the world in Africa, Asia and South America. From time to time, the men also served as military instructors and set up training camps for Soviet-backed fighters in Vietnam andAngola.[8]
Following the deactivation of the SovietGRU in 1992, control of the special forces was transferred to the newly formedG.U. of Russia and were maintained to their respective assigned units as before. According toStanislav Lunev, who defected to the U.S. in 1992, the GRU also commanded some 25,000 Spetsnaz troops as of 1997.[9]
Following the2008 Russian military reform, a brand new Directorate of Special Operations was established in 2009 following studies of American and various Western special operations forces units and commands. The newly formedSpecial Operations Forces which is directly subordinated to theGeneral Staff, bypassing the GRU.[10][11] In 2013, the Directorate became the Special Operations Forces Command with a GRU unit transferring to the command.[11]
In 2010, Spetsnaz GRU units were reassigned to the military districts of theGround Forces and was subordinate to the operational-strategic commands until 2012, due to thenDefence MinisterAnatoliy Serdyukov's military reforms.[12][11] This decision was reversed in 2013 and Spetsnaz GRU units were reassigned to their original GRU divisions.[12][11]
Throughout the mid-1990s to the 2000s, Spetsnaz GRU were involved in both theFirst Chechen War and more prominently in theSecond Chechen War and also theInvasion of Dagestan in August 1999. The special forces learned invaluable lessons from the first war and transformed into a better and more effective fighting force and were instrumental in Russia's and the Russian backed government's success in the second war.
In 2003, during the Second Chechen War, the GRU formed theSpecial BattalionsVostok andZapad, two ethnicChechen units that belonged to the Spetsnaz GRU which fought primarily inChechnya, and also in the 2008Russo-Georgian War as well aspeacekeeping operations after the2006 Lebanon War.
Spetsnaz GRU maintains an airborne unit, the Separate Spetsnaz Airborne Reconnaissance Unit (codenamed No. 48427), which participated in the2008 Georgian War.[13] The unit is housed at Matrosskaya Tishina 10 inMoscow.[13][14]
During theperiod of insurgency in theNorth Caucasus region, Spetsnaz GRU along with special forces from theFSB andMVD conducted numerous special operations and counter-terrorism operations against mainly theCaucasus Emirate,Wilayat al-Qawqaz and other smaller terrorist groups.
After theannexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, during which some units of Spetsnaz GRU were a part of the "Little green men", and the start of therebel insurgency bypro-Russian rebels, Ukraine has on numerous occasions accused various Spetsnaz forces of aiding the rebels and even fighting on the ground inEastern Ukraine. In December 2014, theUkrainian military claimed that the Spetsnaz GRU was involved in attacks on anairport[15] inDonetsk which was later captured byDPR in thebattle.
In late 2015, GRU special forces operators were reportedly involved in theSyrian Civil War, appearing in the government offensives ofAleppo andHoms.[16][17] GRU officials have also visitedQamishli, near the border withTurkey.[18]
Russian Spetsnaz units have been used in theRussian invasion of Ukraine beginning in early 2022, they were initially tasked with going after high-ranking Ukrainian officials, including presidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy in order to decapitate the Ukrainian command and control structure, with the objective being to foster chaos. Like other Russian plans during the start of the invasion, the Russian Spetsnaz failed to take out Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian leadership.[19]
The Russian military was not dissuaded by the failure, and continued to use Spetsnaz in the conflict, particularly deploying them when conventional Russian forces faced significant resistance. This caused the heavy attrition rate suffered by the Russian forces to also reach the Russian Spetsnaz, according to a Pentagon leak in April 2023, all but one of five Spetsnaz brigades that had participated in the war had suffered significant losses by late summer 2022. According to the estimate, one of the separate Spetsnaz brigades in question had only ″125 personnel active out of 900 deployed.″ The casualties were expected to have increased following theUkrainian counteroffensive in September 2022 that liberated hundreds of square miles of territory in a few days, during this offensive, the GRU's Third Guards Spetsnaz Brigade, considered one of the most elite Russian units, was caught in the retreat and had to fight a defensive action in the town ofLyman. A report by the BBC assessed that the Spetsnaz unit lost up to 75% of its men during this action.[19][20][21]
The high amount of losses suffered in Ukraine are expected to leave a strategic capability gap, since special forces unlike conventional units cannot be ″mass-produced″, the leaked Pentagon documents estimated that it would take Russia up to ten years to reconstitute its special operations capability, and this estimate referred to outdated 2022 figures. Although there are no figures concerning Spetsnaz losses after the summer of 2022, the extremely heavy losses suffered by the entire Russian forces suggest that Spetsnaz units have continued to take significant losses in the invasion.[19][21]
Below is a list of current "Spetsnaz" units in theRussian Armed Forces that fall under GRU operational control during wartime operations:[22][23][24]
The navy also fields dedicated maritime sabotage and counter-sabotage diver units which are attached to thenaval infantry. These units also includecombat swimmers, trained toconduct underwater combat,mining andclearance diving. The task is to protect ships and other fleet assets from enemy frogmen and special forces. The term "combat swimmers" is correct term in relation to the staff of the OSNB PDSS. Every PDSS unit has approximately 50–60 combat swimmers.[34]
There are PDSS units in all major naval bases across Russia.[34] The OMRP is composed of reconnaissance divers that fall under operational subordination to the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU). There are four OMRPs in Russia serving each fleet: Northern Fleet, Baltic Fleet, Black Sea Fleet and Pacific Fleet, with each consisting of 120–200 personnel.[34]
The Special Battalions Vostok and Zapad were two Spetsnaz units; Vostok headquartered at Eastern Chechnya and Zapad headquartered at Western Chechnya. It was subordinate to the GRU and responsible for carrying outmountain warfare and special operations in Chechnya. Apower struggle then broke out between rival pro-Russian Chechen warlords thenHead of the Chechen Republic Kadyrov andSulim Yamadaev which led to a series of assassinations and shootouts in the ensuing years forcing the GRU to disband the controversial battalions in November 2008.
Similar foreign special forces units:
В довоенные годы Ставка Верховного Главнокомандующего приняла решение о создании радиодивизионов особого назначения (ОСНАЗ). Они входили в состав Главного разведывательного управления (ГРУ) Генштаба Красной Армии и во время войны вели перехват открытых и шифрованных сообщений немцев и их союзников в прифронтовой полосе, занимались пеленгацией вражеских передатчиков, создавали радиопомехи, участвовали в операциях по дезинформации противника. [...] Подготовка персонала для этих подразделений началась в 1937 г. в Ленинграде. Этим занимались на инженерном радиотехническом факультете Военной электротехнической академии связи имени С. М. Буденного.
The GRU is Russia's largest security service. It deploys six times more officers in foreign countries than the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), which is the successor of the First Main Directorate of the KGB. Moreover, 25,000 spetsnaz troops are directly subordinated to the GRU, whereas the KGB's various successor-organizations have been deprived of their own military formations since 1991.
CIT also published screenshots from the Instagram page of Ilya Gorelykh, who it said had served in Russia's GRU special forces in the past [...] In late October it showed he had uploaded pictures from Aleppo, one of which showed him holding an assault rifle while wearing civilian clothes. Another image of him posing in camouflage with three other armed men was apparently taken in Homs.
We believe that Russia's operation in Syria is a "hybrid war", not unlike the one seen in Ukraine. Apart from the airstrikes, Russia provides Assad forces with surface-to-surface rocket systems, combat vehicles, equipment, advisors, artillery support and spotters. More importantly, recently there have been more and more reports of Russian soldiers, vehicles and "volunteers" being spotted close to the frontlines.
Top Russian military officials, including figures from the GRU military intelligence service, had already visited Qamishli, it added.
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