A doctrine that does not exist. Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov on hybrid war Valery Gerasimov the value of science in foresight

The chief of the Russian General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, was on the list of officials published by the US Treasury Department who could potentially fall under new US sanctions. It is noteworthy that this general some time ago acquired incredible fame in the West. There he is considered the founding father of a new Russian military doctrine, which is called the "Gerasimov doctrine" in media publications and even in official documents.

Ironically, Valery Gerasimov himself did not invent anything like this, and of course, such a doctrine does not exist. Meanwhile, Western specialists on Russia are now divided into two camps. On those who believe in all this, and on those who perfectly understand that all this is fiction. At the same time, the syndrome of the "Gerasimov doctrine" reflects the split in the Western expert community.

The fact that so many people have believed the story of the "Gerasimov Doctrine" is both laughter and disappointment. It all started in February 2013 with an article by Valery Gerasimov entitled “The Value of Science in Foresight,” which is a summary of his annual presentation at the Academy of Military Sciences. In this publication, the general, based on the experience of the "Arab Spring", outlined the Russian vision of the Western approach to warfare and the nature of modern military conflicts. Frankly speaking, in this speech of his it is difficult to find any deviations from the main trends of Russian military thought, which can be traced in other authors.

At first, they simply did not pay attention to Gerasimov's article. But after the annexation of Crimea, they began to perceive it as a program document, an example of the Russian approach to warfare. In fact, very few understood the true meaning of the article and almost no one bothered to read the entire original speech of the general. His interpretation of the American approach to the conduct of political and military confrontation was perceived as a statement of a new Russian doctrine of struggle with the West. This reaction is quite typical for those politicians and the military who are looking for simple answers and catchy details to explain what is happening.

Gerasimov lists new types and methods of warfare and positions them as a set of problems that Russian military theorists have to deal with. The article briefly describes several main trends: the waging of wars without official declaration or recognition of the fact of their waging, the growing importance of asymmetric or non-military means of compared with traditional forms warfare, the widespread use of propaganda and special forces, information warfare, the influence of high-precision weapons that can be massively applied to the entire depth of the enemy's battle formations, as well as the proliferation of drones and robotic systems.

Taken together, all these points have much in common with ongoing discussions in the United States about the nature of hybrid conflicts. Most of Gerasimov's observations concern perennial military problems arising from geopolitical confrontation between great powers capable of combining non-military and military instruments.

It should be noted that there are many official doctrines in Russia, both published and secret. Nonetheless, the suggestion that the chief of the Russian General Staff sets out operational plans in his articles or uses them to convey his doctrinal considerations to fellow generals abroad is simply ridiculous. Moreover, all the coincidences were superficial, and Gerasimov covered such a wide range of conflicts that any military or political activity of Russia could fit into this framework. The problem of misinterpreting Russian doctrine and actions of the Russian Federation was aggravated by the lack of qualified specialists in Russia and the inexperience of the Western leadership in this matter.

Among Western military experts Gerasimov has a reputation for good specialist on the use of armored forces, but to develop a new doctrine usually requires the painstaking work of a whole host of military thinkers. Gerasimov himself, instead of promoting his own model of warfare, quotes the words of another well-known Russian military theorist Alexander Svechin: “For each war, a special line of strategic behavior must be developed, each war is a special case that requires the establishment of its own special logic, and not the application of any template ". The essence of Gerasimov's thoughts is that one should not copy foreign experience or try to catch up with the United States, that the Russian military must master new forms and methods of warfare.

Despite the fact that the term "Gerasimov Doctrine" often appears in Western publications, an observant observer may notice that there is not a word about it in the recently published report of the US Department of Defense Intelligence Agency "Russian military power". There is no mention of Gerasimov in the section on Russian military doctrine. For serious specialists in the Russian armed forces, the words "Gerasimov doctrine" have already become a kind of professional joke.

Nevertheless, a qualified opinion on this issue, as well as on Russian issues in general, is a rarity in the West. As a result, Valery Gerasimov's reputation as the gloomy creator of the new Russian military doctrine is only growing stronger. He has already become so famous that they will soon begin to envy him.

Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov is the Russian military commander, as well as the military commander of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. Currently wears honorary title General of the Army and has been a Hero of Russia since 2016.

Childhood

The birthplace of Valery Gerasimov is the city of Kazan in the Republic of Tatarstan. He was born on September 8, 1955. His family is simple and ordinary. But even in early childhood, playing war games, the boy decided that he would become a military man, and he strove for this all his life.

But his interest in the military profession began to show only after the colorful and detailed stories of his uncle, who was a participant in the war, were listened to. The uncle of the future general was in command of a tank company.

During school years big influence the boy was influenced by the stories of Konstantin Simonov, which he not only read quickly, enjoying this reading, but also reread them several times in order to remember all the details and details.

Education

Realizing his son's desire to become a military man, Valery's father sent his documents to the Suvorov military school as soon as he graduated from the fourth grade. But all the places in the Kazan school were occupied, so Valery Gerasimov waited four more years to try again. But during this time the boy's desire did not disappear, but only became even stronger.

In 1971, his wish came true, and Valery Gerasimov became a Suvorovite. And in 1973 he graduated with honors, but the training did not end there. Already in the same year, he entered the Higher Tank School, which was in his hometown... After graduating from it in 1977 with a bronze medal, he immediately enters military academy named after Marshal Malinovsky. After graduating with honors, the young man soon submits documents to the military academy of the General Staff, where Valery Gerasimov was able to establish himself as the best student and course participant. At this time, he already had the rank of colonel.

Military career

His military activities General of the Army Valery Gerasimov started in 1977 with the troops of the Northern Group, where he was initially the commander of a tank platoon. After graduating from the Academy of the General Staff in 1987, he was immediately sent to the Baltic Military District, and then to Poland.

In 1991, when there was a change in the country state system, Valery Gerasimov was in the Baltic States, where he held the post of deputy commander of a motorized rifle division. At the same time, he also began to head the headquarters, so a transfer to the Moscow military district soon followed. Valery Gerasimov was appointed first deputy commander russian army.

Then, for two years he served in the Far Eastern District. And only after that, in 2005, Valery Vasilievich Gerasimov received the post of Chief of the Main Directorate of the Armed Forces. But this career of Valery Vasilyevich did not end there.

Participation in hostilities in the North Caucasus

Military people do not seek to look for simple and easy ways in their lives, so they always strive to go where their experience, knowledge and skills can be useful and serve for the benefit of the people. The same desires are constantly driven by many military leaders, among whom was Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov. Once started fighting in the North Caucasus, he immediately asked to go there.

For the first time, he took part in the military events in the Caucasus in the period from 1993 to 1997. He served as commander of a motorized rifle division. He showed himself as a brave and courageous person. But the biography of Valery Gerasimov has never been easy. Therefore, in 1997, from the North-Western Military District, he was transferred to the North Caucasus Military District, where he participated in hostilities even before 2003. Having chosen the fifty-eighth army, he was able to lead the headquarters.

At the same time, he became a participant not only in fierce battles, but also in counter-terrorist operations. But first, at headquarters, he was engaged in recruiting personnel and closely monitoring the combat training of all personnel. But there was not only work in the rear. So, he was assigned to lead one of the operations in Chechnya, which took place in the Bamut direction.

The battle group, commanded by a general of the Russian army, was ambushed and struggled to break through to its forces thanks to helicopters that fought from the air. Soon a reverse operation followed, in which there were absolutely no losses among the Russian soldiers, but those militants who had recently shot at point-blank range Russian commanders and fighters were killed and taken prisoner. After that, there were several more operations, which were very successful under the command of Valery Vasilyevich.

Participation in Ukrainian events

In 2014, when the crisis occurred in Ukraine, Valery Gerasimov was included in the sanctions list of the European Union, and then Canada. He was accused of being involved in the delivery of the Buk to the territory of the DPR, and also accused that it was at his command that a rocket was launched that shot down a Boeing-777, where all the passengers were killed.

Therefore, already in 2015, the Ukrainian military prosecutor's office a decision was made, according to which he was considered not only the main military ideologist, but more than ten military cases were attributed to him. A decision was made to arrest him in absentia, and Valery Gerasimov was put on the wanted list.

Personal life of General Gerasimov

In his family life, Valery Vasilyevich is very happy, since his wife throughout the marriage is his reliable assistant, friend and support. In this marriage there is also a child - a son.

Currently, Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov has a huge number of awards, but continues to serve his Fatherland.

ABOUTbattles "hybrid war of Russia" in recent times is regularly used by Western media. In some specialized publications, the term "Gerasimov doctrine" is additionally used. The meaning of these concepts and their origin is explained by an article by a former professor of applied systems sciences and a member of the Institute of Intelligent Systems Technology ( Instituts für Technik Intelligenter Systeme, ITIS) at the Bundeswehr University in Munich (Germany), Dr. Reiner K. HUBER (Reiner K. HUBER).

"InVoen Info" is interested in the opinion of the reader, so thank you in advance for your comments.

In the official estimates, experts very quickly united in the fact that the beginning of March [ Oct 2018] was the landmark of hacker attacks on the data transmission networks of the government of the Federal Republic and other states, primarily Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, probably controlled by the Kremlin. If this were confirmed, it would be another confirmation that Putin's Russia has long been waging a strategic information war against the West. Does Moscow want to return the lost after the collapse Soviet Union spheres of influence through hybrid wars? Or is it aspiring to a “Eurasian Union from Vladivostok to Lisbon,” as it is perceived by the ultra-conservative Kremlin consultant Alexander Dugin?

Regarding the term "waging a hybrid war"

The term "maintenance hybrid war»First appears in 2007 in an article by Frank HOFFMAN ( Frank HOFFMAN). In him former officer The US Marine Corps describes an analytical concept to explain the gains that comparatively weak military adversaries — non-state actors such as the Taliban or al-Qaeda — could achieve against the vastly outnumbered US forces.

F. Hoffman concludes that the conduct of a hybrid war is a coordinated use of military and non-military means, which, on the main battlefield (main battlefield), achieve synergy in the physical and psychological dimensions of the conflict (Frank Hoffmann: “Conflict in the 21st century: The rise of hybrid wars "- Conflictinthe 21stCentury:TheRiseofHybridWars- Arlington, V.A .: Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, 2007). Along with "waging hybrid warfare," there is another term, such as "asymmetric warfare", which al-Qaeda spawned in the context of the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington.

In the military scientific journals of Russia, the Western discussion of F. Hoffman's ideas about hybrid warfare was initially rejected. But that changed when scholars in the West tried to find in Russian military literature a hint of the concept of a successful annexation of Crimea. At the same time, they stumbled upon an article by the Chief of the General Staff of Russia Valery GERASIMOV from 2013. Although the term “hybrid war” is not mentioned in it, later V. Gerasimov was advanced by “the father of the concept of hybrid war” (Maria Snegovaya: “Putin's information war in Ukraine : the Soviet origin of Russia's hybrid war "- Putin's information war in Ukraine: Soviet origins of Russia's hybrid warfare, - Institute for War Research, Russia Report No. 1, September 2015).

The concept of "waging a hybrid war", as it was applied in Ukraine, is mentioned in the West as an example of using the means of state power below the military threshold. Seen as a means by which Russia tries to achieve the strategic goals of the Russian revisionist foreign policy... These tools include cyber operations, as well as information and propaganda campaigns run by the international television news channel Russia Today ( Russia Today) and its agents. This also includes financial and ideological support for right-wing or left-wing populist movements and parties, especially in the social media of the respective target countries.

Gerasimov's doctrine

The aforementioned article by V. Gerasimov is based on a speech he gave in January 2013 to officers Russian Academy Military Sciences. It was a provocative appeal to the military establishment. V. Gerasimov presented innovative military considerations as a prerequisite for the further modernization of the Russian Armed Forces. He referred to the Chinese general and military strategist Sun Tzu (previously 496 BC), who proclaimed the motto: "The best strategy is to conquer the enemy without a fight." Now it has become a necessary form of warfare - the usual rules of war have changed.

Political goals currently can be achieved not only with conventional firepower, but also by

widespread use of disinformation, political, economic, humanitarian and other non-military measures that are used in conjunction with the protest potential of the [hostile] population.

These ideas were implemented in the concept of a "new generation of Russian war", which was called in the West the "Gerasimov doctrine" ( Gerassimow-Doktrin). American political scientist Molly McCue ( Molly mckEW) makes ironic comments on Gerasimov's theses: “ It is better to split the society of the enemy than to attack him head-on«. ( Politico Magazin, September / October 2017 /).

Late in the West, it became clear to independent experts and NATO observers that Russia was waging a war in Ukraine in accordance with the rules of this doctrine. The Kremlin has covered the conflict between pro-Russian forces and ultranationalists in Ukraine, starting with protests in Kiev against President Yanukovych. Thus, a pretext was obtained for the annexation of the Crimea and the beginning of the war in the east of Ukraine.

Russian justifications, in both cases, it is about the democratic right to self-determination of the local population, were taken up by pro-Russian separatists in the region. At the same time, cyber operations to monitor the situation, to purposefully influence the political leadership in Ukraine and the population, have arisen - and are still being carried out. Cyber \u200b\u200boperations should lead to sabotage and destabilize Ukraine, as well as other states, including the Baltic states.

Phases of the new generation of the Russian war

Based on the diaries of the Russian campaign in Ukraine - Janis BERZINSH ( Janis BERZINS), Director of the Center for Security and Strategic Studies ( Center for Security and Strategic Research, СSSR) at the National Defense Academy of Latvia, one of the first in the West to present a publicly available description of the Gerasimov doctrine.

In it, he identified eight phases, in each of which it is necessary to achieve set goals. Each phase is based on the next stage, therefore it is a prerequisite for the success of the next phase. In the first five non-kinetic phases, only non-military means and methods are presented, in the last three (kinetic) only stages and methods with the use of weapons. However, in five non-kinetic phases, military means of intimidation of the enemy are defined in the form of false air attacks, temporary military exercises and large maneuvers near the borders of enemy territory from Eastern Europe and the Baltic countries.

Phase 1. Creation of favorable political, economic and military conditions for internal destabilization through ideological, diplomatic and economic operations, as well as disinformation actions and methods of psychological warfare.
Phase 2. Misleading the political and military leadership of the enemy through the dissemination of erroneous data through diplomatic channels, the media, and later through their own government and their armed forces.
Phase 3. Actions that result in government officials and officials adversaries leave their posts, being intimidated, deceived or bribed.
Phase 4. Growing discontent of the population through the activation of the "fifth column", the penetration of militant groups and the strengthening of subversive activities.
Phase 5. Preparation of hostilities, during which various kinds of problems are created in the attacked country and separate combat groups are thrown (“ little green men") Who interact with the armed opposition.
Phase 6. Beginning of hostilities after thorough reconnaissance and subversion. All (Russian) troops, including special forces, must take their positions.
Phase 7. Destruction of the main enemy defense forces by coordinated actions of all forces, including the conduct of electronic warfare.
Phase 8. The defeat of the remaining centers of resistance and the destruction of the resisting units by conducting special operations.

Although from the Russian point of view, the annexation of Crimea in March 2014 was successfully completed in phase 5, the attack by Russian-backed separatists in Donbas against the resistance of the Ukrainian armed forces was stuck in phase 6. Signed in February 2015 by German Chancellor Angela MERKEL, French presidents François ALLAND, Ukraine Peter POROSHENKO and Russia Vladimir PUTIN and the Minsk Agreements aimed at de-escalation and restoration of peace have so far changed little the confrontation between the Armed Forces of Ukraine and separatist forces.

Over the past four years, the conflict in eastern Ukraine has cost more than 10,000 human lives. As part of the Minsk agreements, the agreed observation of the ceasefire in the region has failed because neither side has taken the required steps. At present, there is also no progress in the so-called Minsk process. Since the agreements specified in the Minsk Agreements do not formally bind Russia to anything, it cannot be ruled out that Putin, given a convenient international situation for him, will not reactivate phase 6 and - if Ukraine does not surrender earlier - will launch phases 7 and 8 to annex Donbass, and then also annex the rest of Ukraine.

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Conclusion

This "new generation of Russian war" blurs the line between war and peace, as was the case with the annexation of Crimea. Is Russia experiencing cyber attacks on Western countries, their readiness and ability to respond to such hybrid strategies? If you agree with this, then Russia is on the way to a new conflict - in the hope that it can be won without using military force... For example, snatching the states out of the ranks of the Baltic states would be a great success for Russia on the way to the “New Russia” described several years ago.

If only the West and the NATO states could cohesively and timely respond to at least one "test conflict" of Russia, conducted in accordance with the Gerasimov doctrine. However, this is compounded by the fact that key evidence that in the early stages of a conflict cyber attacks are controlled from the Kremlin is unlikely to be obtained. As a result, political support for an effective response is not easy to obtain at this time. This is precisely the calculation of the new generation of the Russian war.

Based on materials from the magazine " Europäische Sicherheit & Technik»

In the forests and fields of Belarus, Russian tanks, armored vehicles and soldiers line up in a westward-oriented battle formation. Warships are conducting combat maneuvers in the Baltic Sea. Planes with paratroopers are preparing for takeoff. Who is the enemy? The militant state of Veyshnoria, in which Western-financed terrorists have entrenched themselves, seeking to destabilize Russia and infiltrate its sphere of influence.

In fact, Veishnoria is a fictitious country, and Russia is only conducting exercises on the eastern border of the European Union. Nonetheless, nervous NATO leaders are already saying that such a show of power reflects the concept of "hybrid war" developed by General Valery Gerasimov, who heads the general staff of the Russian military. This military doctrine has supposedly turned Russia into a more dangerous threat than at any time since the Cold War.

Context

Commander in chief of information war

Le Point 03/04/2017

Ukraine is at war with Russia for European values

Voice of America Russian Service 09.07.2015

Gerasimov's doctrine

Politico 09/07/2017 While the exercises "West" are unfolding, the duration of which should be a week, NATO is strengthening its grouping in the Baltic States, the US Air Force is taking control of the Baltic air spaceand European governments are preparing to defend against disinformation campaigns, fake news, and cyberattacks.

The silent, rarely seen in public, Mr. Gerasimov is an exemplary general. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu once called him "a military man to the root of his hair."

It is believed that Mr. Shoigu, a politician turned general, listens to the advice of a former tanker in military matters. According to one of the reviews, "Shoigu perfectly portrays playing the guitar, while Gerasimov plays it in the background."

As the de facto head of the Russian armed forces, Mr. Gerasimov published his reflections on military science. “In the 21st century, there is a tendency to blur the distinction between the state of war and peace. Wars are no longer declared, but when they start, they do not follow the pattern we are used to, ”he said in a 2,000-word article published in February 2013 in the weekly russian newspaper "Military Industrial Courier".

"Asymmetric actions have become widespread ... These include the use of special operations forces and internal opposition to create a permanent front throughout the territory of the opposing state, as well as informational influence, the forms and methods of which are constantly being improved," he argued.

This material was written on the basis of a report that Mr. Gerasimov made three months after his appointment as Chief of the General Staff. Its description of a hybrid war, which includes "political, economic, informational, humanitarian and other non-military measures" a year later turned out to be prophetic. Russian troops in uniforms without insignia appeared in Crimea and conducted an operation that led to the annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula. This was preceded by demonstrations organized by Russian agents against the pro-Western government of Ukraine.

Western observers immediately began to perceive Mr. Gerasimov's article as a blueprint for future Russian hybrid attacks against the West. The proliferation of pro-Russian news media, financial support for European politicians who oppose the establishment, and the alleged activities of Russian hackers against Western political campaigns and elections - all of this is seen as manifestations of the so-called Gerasimov doctrine.

“Remote non-contact impact on the enemy is becoming the main way to achieve the goals of combat and operations,” noted Mr. Gerasimov in his article, which the head of the US Marine Corps, Robert Neller, in his own words, re-read three times. "All this is supplemented by military measures of a covert nature, including the implementation of information warfare measures and the actions of special operations forces."

Mr. Gerasimov is married and has a son. The future general was born in 1955 in a working class family in the city of Kazan, located on the banks of the Volga, about 800 kilometers east of Moscow. He also graduated from the Higher Tank command school.

Gerasimov rapidly made a career in armored forces Red Army. He served in different parts Soviet Union, commanded the 58th Army in the North Caucasus, fought in Chechnya. For some time he was chief of staff of the Far Eastern Military District, and then commanded the troops of the St. Petersburg and Moscow military districts, and then became deputy chief general staff... He was removed from this post after a confrontation with his superior, but returned five months later to replace him as head of the General Staff.

“I believe that all the activities of the General Staff should be aimed at achieving one main goal - maintaining the combat effectiveness of the Armed Forces,” he told Vladimir Putin on the day of his appointment. However, many doubt the existence of the Gerasimov Doctrine as a comprehensive strategy.

“As far as I understand, [Mr.] Gerasimov was trying to explain how the West is acting against Russia, not how Russia should act,” says Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Moscow Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies. - In the West, many are trying to portray him as a strategist and visionary. However, in reality he is a pure military man. "

Mr Gerasimov last week met with the chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Petr Pavel, to reassure him that the West exercise is defensive and does not pose a threat to other countries. However, both in Poland and in the Baltics, many are alarmed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and fear that the head of the Russian General Staff may take advantage of the war games and plan a similar provocation.

“We should not copy someone else's experience and catch up with the leading countries, but work ahead of the curve and be in leading positions ourselves,” he emphasized in his text in 2013.

InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the Inosmi editorial board.

As Exercise West unfolds, scheduled to last for a week, NATO is strengthening its forces in the Baltics, the US Air Force is taking control of Baltic airspace, and European governments are preparing to defend against disinformation campaigns, fake news, and cyberattacks.

The silent, rarely seen in public, Mr. Gerasimov is an exemplary general. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu once called him "a military man to the root of his hair."

As the de facto head of the Russian armed forces, Mr. Gerasimov published his reflections on military science. “In the 21st century, there is a tendency to blur the distinction between the state of war and peace. Wars are no longer declared, but when they start, they do not follow the pattern we are used to, ”he said in a 2,000-word article published in February 2013 in the Russian weekly newspaper Voenno-Promyshlenniy Courier.

“Remote non-contact impact on the enemy is becoming the main way to achieve the goals of combat and operations,” Mr. Gerasimov noted in his article, which the head of the US Marine Corps, Robert Neller, in his own words, re-read three times. "All this is complemented by military measures of a covert nature, including the implementation of information warfare measures and the actions of special operations forces."

Mr. Gerasimov is married and has a son. The future general was born in 1955 in a working class family in the city of Kazan, located on the banks of the Volga, about 800 kilometers east of Moscow. There he graduated from the Higher Tank Command School.

Gerasimov made a rapid career in the tank forces of the Red Army. He served in different parts of the Soviet Union, commanded the 58th Army in the North Caucasus, and fought in Chechnya. For some time he was the chief of staff of the Far Eastern Military District, and then commanded the troops of the St. Petersburg and Moscow military districts, and then became deputy chief of the general staff. He was removed from this post after a confrontation with his superior, but returned five months later to replace him as head of the General Staff.

“We should not copy someone else's experience and catch up with the leading countries, but work ahead of the curve and be in leading positions ourselves,” he emphasized in his text in 2013.

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