Russia Plans Major Changes to the Armed Forces for 2023-2026, Minister of Defense Shoigu: Guarantee Security

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu Wikimedia Commons Presidential Executive Office of Russia

JAKARTA - Russia said on Tuesday it would make "major changes" to its armed forces from 2023 to 2026, pledging, to build up its military structure after months of setbacks on the battlefield in Ukraine.

In addition to administrative reforms, the Ministry of Defense said it would strengthen the combat capabilities of its naval, aerospace and strategic missile forces.

"Only by strengthening the main structural components of the Armed Forces, will it be possible to guarantee the country's military security and protect new entities and important facilities of the Russian Federation," Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the changes were necessary because of a "proxy war" being waged in Ukraine by the West, which has been sending heavy weaponry to Ukraine to help fight Russian troops.

Russia's Defense Ministry, which has faced sharp criticism at home for the ineffectiveness of its efforts to control large parts of Ukraine, pledged in December to increase its military personnel to 1.5 million.

It has made many changes to its leadership in 11 months of what it calls a "special military operation", during which its forces initially seized large swathes of southern and eastern Ukraine, but have since suffered a series of defeats and painful retreats.

Last week, Defense Minister Shoigu appointed Army General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the military's general staff, to lead the military campaign in Ukraine.

Separately, the Defense Ministry said on Friday, it had taken control of Soledar - a small salt-mining town in Ukraine's Donetsk region that for weeks has been the focus of a Russian offensive.