50 Billion Dollars Are Being Planned to Spend for State Defensive Order for the First Time in the Russian Federation. Will They Be Stolen?

The total sum of the state defensive order for 2009 will make 1,3 billion roubles (50 billion dollars at the current rate of the Central Bank), RIA of News transfers referring to the application of vice-premier Sergey Ivanov made by him at a meeting with the president Dmitry Medvedev. Ivanov noted that he expected for the approval of the sum by the State Duma in the second reading on October, 17 when the project of the budget for 2009-2011 would be considered. Vice-premier also noted that it is the first defensive order which was formation not by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade but the Military-Industrial Commission.

All budgetary applications of Ministry of Defence and other power structures as well we assignments of the president and the governments given already after the approval of the state program on arms were taken into consideration in the order. State defensive order was formed in two stages and at the second stage additional 60 billion roubles for Ministry of Defence besides 20 billion roubles given on formation of two new military bases in South Ossetia and Abkhazia were included into it.

On the background of so significant application it is necessary to note that last, more modest state defensive order was executed only on two thirds. The total amount of the defensive contracts have been concluded by the state customers makes 65 percent from the volume of budgetary financing though all of them have been obliged to place orders till March, 1, 2008. Vice-premier Sergey Ivanov informed about it in March of the current year agency "Interfax". "On a number of directions the rates of placing of the state defensive order in general are unsatisfactory", - RIA News transferred then Ivanov's words.

Enterprises of a military-industrial complex frankly do not cope with performance of the state defensive order, agency RIA News transfers the words of the first vice-premier of the Russian government Sergey Ivanov.

In Ivanov's opinion, stated at a meeting with veterans of Military-Industrial commission in December of the last year the problem of military industry was connected to personnel crisis and low labour productivity. At the same time, a number of manufacturers tries to shuffle problems off on the shoulders of the state signing impracticable obligations. "Now the problem is not in money. We offer them (enterprises) money but under the condition: new tank - in eight months, new plane - in nine months - if you can? Those who are fair, say "no", those who are roguish - say "let's try", - he said.

From editorial staff: We are often reproached for exaggeration speaking that problems of the Russian defensive industry lay not at all in deficiency of money - there was a personnel degradation of a batch production in the country. This cannot be corrected quickly for any money.

Public fairly does not trust our estimations - who we are, whether we have sufficient philological education to judge the defensive industry? Well, here you are slightly forgotten words of vice-premier Ivanov, completely confirming stated in the article of FORUM.msk "Record" of "Sinave" without Chances for Success".

There's sense to cite it:

"Recently, acting on expert club in "Rosbalt" agency, I have depicted this problem quite detailed. Briefly - its a problem of batch production of new technics and a problem of the qualified manpower.

(...) We perfectly realize that during Soviet time the main problem of input of new technics was not in developments and developers but in a batch production, situation with which in the USSR was always worse, than with design and experimental one. It even allowed to speak about certain "Russian way of manufacture" which consisted in non-serial approach and high share of high efficiency hand work.

So, for more than 20 years those carriers of high technologies went on a pension and, by average life expectancy of men in Russia in 58 years, simply have time even to die. It's possible to mathball manufacture, while it won't work with a man. The transfer of skills from the experienced worker to the young one occurs only during real manufacture and lasts on hi-tech manufactures from 8 till 15 years. In fact there was no real manufacture all those years, there was nothing to transfer, there was no place for it and, more often, nobody.

The problem was discussed by the experts of MIC 8-9 years ago, but it was not solved then. Today, after all these years it's already not possible to solve it. Break of generations has already taken place. Production of the rockets, submarines and other military technique is such a thing that it's not possible to employ Tadjiks or Chinese. For this reason, despite of all censures Chinese and Indians continue to order military equipment in our country - they don't have own manufacture with sufficient qualification of staff and no matter how much money you spend, it's not possible to create it in short terms, you need generations".

What is possible to solve now by allocation even of a huge defensive budget? Ivanov says - fair people will simply refuse money, while dishonest ones will try to steal.

We are also being reproached that we only enumerates the lacks and don't suggest anything constructive. But for 5 years we are practically cut out from real processes in the defensive industry, are engaged basically in analytical work - that is we observe "the deeds" of other people. Probably, not enough competent ones, as the results especially if not to consider rouble spent, we shall say openly, are dwarfish. Let alone the government of Primakov - Маsliukov - Gerashchenko, even Kasyanov's cabinet not dreaming about today's oil superincomes had much more appreciable results in the field of industrial growth. The more oil money was, the worse affairs with real sector were.

Here, at last, we came to natural result - it's not possible to produce modern military equipment serially at the enterprises of the Russian MIC. For any money! There is no staff! The problem is that you can't employ the Chinese with Tadjiks.

Perhaps, at least one young goof - off from memorable camp of "Nashi" on Seliger for which 5 million dollars for a season were spent was directed to realize ambitions in the industry? No, hardly - there everyone wants to be the leader, to direct Russia little by little. To produce tanks and planes - that's for a "mob". While "mob" of the corresponding age won't go to work on factory today. Even if you will persuade it somehow, not one tens years necessary to square this tree up to condition of "Buratino". Whether we have it, this ten years?

However, there is nevertheless one receipt - to drive away all this philological and furniture-selling ragtag from army and military industry! Today Military-Industrial Commission should be headed personally by the president and it's much more important, than flourishing toy sabre on amusing ship before television cameras. It is not necessary to play in structural changes uniting one wreck with another and allocating under it budgetary money - this money couldn't be used in any way, only to be stolen! Forming of the state defensive order should be dictated first of all by inquiries of the defensive doctrine of the country which is not present - but how to build army without it?

For example, what for does our country, which another 30 years will not have any interests in World Ocean, need aircraft carrier group? Whom are we going to threaten to? To the Swedes?

So, it is necessary to force works on creation of means of struggle against alien aircraft carriers, if they will start representing threat to our sea communications. These are modern types of rocket cruisers and boats on the technologies "stealth" armed with modern and not out-of-date already in the last century rockets. There should be a lot of such vessels as well as enough rockets on them, so that it won't be necessary to show one and the same vessel from different foreshortenings showing "power".

We cannot produce serially big parties of modern planes, can we? But repair and modernization of already existing machines demands essentially smaller expenditures of labour and can be carried out on developmental manufactures at Experimental Design Offices including forces of designers and developers whose qualification for the present does not cause doubt. It means, it is necessary to carry out scale modernization of machines which are already working in armies - plus to make in serious scales buy-out of aviation equipment delivered before to foreign countries which do not require it any more, say, East European countries of NATO or former Soviet republics. This technique needs to be redeemed, repaired, modernized and delivered into armies. This process can be used for carrying out of preparation and retraining of the technical staff for the future large-lot production.

It is necessary to create new manufactures on the basis of relative on structure, say, enterprises on repair and service of naval technique in industrial agglomeration around of Rostov-on-Don and Taganrog - instead of the base in Sevastopol which we unequivocally have lost. It is necessary to remember that that were Taganrog and fortress of St. Dmitry Rostovsky (future Rostov-on-Don) which were created as base of the Black Sea Fleet and only the conquest of Crimea and construction of Sevastopol changed their applicability. But now, as soon as Crimea is lost, it is necessary to come back there, whence we came from instead of dreaming of bases in Syria and Abkhazia or return conquest of Crimea. The base in Temryuk - it's good, certainly, but there is in fact naked steppe and estuaries there, while fleet needs to live somewhere. Why not to base it in quiet Gulf of Taganrog, Miussky Estuary and entry of Don?

Ah, yes, it's not possible to steal there as much money as it's possible from creation of new base on empty place, certainly... But in fact the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation doesn't have now the target to capture Bosporus and Dardanelles. So, it is possible to change the structure of the fleet now in connection with changed strategic tasks. Well, steal not on disorder, on new manufacture - you can at least to reconstruct the program of ram wing machines on base of aircraft factory named after Beriev in Taganrog. Why not... Dig bypass channel through Taman not to depend on Ukraine in use of Kerch Strait. At least in it you will look like Stalin a bit...

Other way of thinking is necessary for this purpose. It's necessary not to count money but to count inquiries and their execution in terms of tons-hours, man-days. Not 50 billion dollars spend on defense of the country but divisions of fighters and connections of submarines, "big battalions" as one guy Napoleon Bonaparte spoke once, they say, he had not bad understanding of military science.

Аnatoly Baranov

Send by mail

Print