Inside the Soviet Army
Encyclopedia
Inside The Soviet Army a book by Viktor Suvorov
, describes the general organisation, doctrine, and strategy of the Soviet armed forces (the term “Army” being used to cover not only the Land Forces, but also Strategic Rocket
, Air Defence
, Air, and Naval forces).
Suvorov explains his view on the political realities of the USSR, where everything is subordinated to maintain the Communist regime's dominance, thus explaining the rationale behind Soviet strategic planning. He then goes on to explain the organisation of the Soviet armed forces, from the top down, emphasizing the Land Forces/Soviet Army
. Technical details are presented where useful, but the primary concern is explaining the underlying philosophy and culture, often contrasted with the Western military approach. Suvorov then concludes with descriptions of the daily life inside the Soviet Army for the soldier and the officer, including the bullying and hazing practice known as dedovshchina
, a practice then almost unknown to the West at the time of publication, which has become notorious in the Russian Ground Forces
of the post-Soviet period.
Viktor Suvorov
Viktor Suvorov is the pen name for Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun , a former Soviet and now British writer of Russian and Ukrainian descent who writes primarily in Russian, as well as a former Soviet military intelligence spy who defected to the UK...
, describes the general organisation, doctrine, and strategy of the Soviet armed forces (the term “Army” being used to cover not only the Land Forces, but also Strategic Rocket
Strategic Rocket Forces
The 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...
, Air Defence
Soviet Anti-Air Defense
The Soviet Air Defence Forces was the air defense branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. It continued being a service branch of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation from 1991 to 1998. Unlike Western air defense forces, V-PVO was a branch of the military unto itself, separate from the Soviet...
, Air, and Naval forces).
Suvorov explains his view on the political realities of the USSR, where everything is subordinated to maintain the Communist regime's dominance, thus explaining the rationale behind Soviet strategic planning. He then goes on to explain the organisation of the Soviet armed forces, from the top down, emphasizing the Land Forces/Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
. Technical details are presented where useful, but the primary concern is explaining the underlying philosophy and culture, often contrasted with the Western military approach. Suvorov then concludes with descriptions of the daily life inside the Soviet Army for the soldier and the officer, including the bullying and hazing practice known as dedovshchina
Dedovshchina
Dedovshchina is the name given to the informal system of subjection of new junior conscripts, formerly to the Soviet Armed Forces and today to the Russian armed forces, Interior Ministry, and FSB border guards, as well as the military forces of certain former Soviet Republics, to brutalization...
, a practice then almost unknown to the West at the time of publication, which has become notorious in the Russian Ground Forces
Russian Ground Forces
The 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...
of the post-Soviet period.