• Great Military Leaders
• The Bermuda Triangle
• Why is the System of Supreme Military Command so complex?
• An example of Western misunderstanding. Who flees the country?
• Why does the Minister of Defense have secrets?
• Organisation of the Soviet Armed Forces
• Supreme Command of the Strategic Direction
• Branches of the Armed Forces
• How the Red Army is divided by tasks
• Strategic Rocket Forces (RVSN)
• Troops of the Country’s Air Defence (PVO)
• Ground Forces (SV)
• Motorized Rifle Troops
• Tank Troops
• Rocket Forces and Artillery of the Ground Forces
• Air Defence Troops of the Ground Forces
• Air Assault Troops
• Diversionary Troops (Spetsnaz)
• Troops of Fortified Areas (UR)
• Air Forces (VVS)
• Military Transport Aviation
• Why does the West consider Admiral Gorshkov a strong man?
• Airborne Troops
• Military Intelligence and the Reserve
• The Crooked Mirror
• Combat Organisation
• Division
• Army
• Front
• Why are there 20 Soviet Divisions in Germany but only five in Czechoslovakia?
• Organisation of the South-Western Strategic Direction
• Mobilisation
• Types of Divisions
• Invisible Divisions
• Why is a Military District commanded by a Colonel General in peacetime, but only a Major General in wartime?
• System for the Evacuation of the Politburo from the Kremlin
• Strategy and Tactics
• The Theory of the Axe
• Strategic Offensive
• Operational Considerations
• Tactics
• Rear Services Support
• Armament
• What Types of Weapons?
• Learning from Mistakes
• When Can We Deploy Our Tanks?
• The Flying Tank
• The Most Important Weapon
• Why Are Anti-Tank Guns Not Self-Propelled?
• Favourite Weapon
• Why Such Different Calibers?
• Secret, Secret, Secret
• How Much Does All This Cost?
• Copying Weapons
• Soldiers
• Formation
• How to Evade Conscription
• If You Can’t—We’ll Teach You, If You Don’t Want To—We’ll Force You
• 1,441 Minutes
• Day by Day
• Why Does a Soldier Need to Know a Map?
• Training of Sergeants
• The System of Correction
• Officer Corps
• How They Are Managed
• How Much Do You Drink in Your Free Time?
• Inform on Us, and We Will Talk
• Who Becomes a Soviet Officer and Why?
• Higher Military Educational Institutions
• Military Ranks and Positions
• Military Academies
• Generals
• Conclusion
Great Military Leaders
Why was the Warsaw Pact created later than NATO?
1
Western nations established NATO in 1949, while the Warsaw Pact was only created in 1955. For Communists, a comparison of these two dates allows for excellent propaganda aimed at millions of souls. But a fact is a fact—the West had already created a military bloc, and the Communists merely implemented countermeasures later, and moreover, there was a long delay before they created their military bloc.
Despite the fact that the Soviet Union and its allies repeatedly and persistently proposed the dissolution of military blocs in Europe and everywhere else in the world, Western nations rejected these peaceful proposals almost unanimously.
Let us consider the sincerity of the CPSU. Let us assume that the intentions of the CPSU were sincere. Let the Communists not want war. But then the delay in creating a military bloc of Communist countries contradicts the fundamental slogan of Marxism-Leninism, “Workers of the world, unite!” This is, after all, the main thing Marx shouted about.
Why did the workers of Eastern Europe not rush to unite in a union against the bourgeoisie? How does this align with Marx? And how did it happen that the Warsaw Pact was created not in accordance with the Communist Manifesto but solely as a response to steps taken by the bourgeois countries, and quite belatedly at that?
It may seem strange; nevertheless, there is no contradiction with Marxism. In trying to understand the goals and structure of the Warsaw Pact from within and the delay in its creation (which at first glance is inexplicable), we will neither delve into theory nor study this tangled bureaucratic organization. If we consider the fate of Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky, we will understand, if not everything, then at least the most essential points.
2
Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky was born in 1896 in the ancient Russian city of Velikiye Luki. At eighteen, he was drafted into the Russian army. He spent the entire war at the front, first as a private, then as a non-commissioned officer. In the first days of the Revolution, he joined the Communist Party and the Red Army. He distinguished himself as a fighter against the Russian and Polish armies. He advanced quickly, ending the Civil War as a regimental commander. He then commanded a brigade, a division, and then a corps.
During the Great Purge, the Communists tortured or shot those who had survived until then—for former connections with the Russian government, army, politicians, diplomats, church, or cultural figures. Red Army Corps Commander Rokossovsky was among the millions of these victims because he had served in the Russian army.
During the investigation, terrible tortures were applied to him. They knocked out nine of his teeth, broke three of his ribs, and tore out his nails with pliers. He was sentenced to death and spent more than three months on death row. There is testimony, including his own, that at least twice he was led to the execution site and stood on the edge of the grave. During this time, the generals to his right and left were shot. He, however, was “shot” with blank cartridges.
On the eve of the war between Germany and the Soviet Union, Rokossovsky was released, given the rank of Major General of the Tank Forces, and appointed commander of a mechanized corps. However, the charges against him were not dropped, and the death sentence was not annulled. “The mechanized corps was commanded by a convict, and we later learned about his death sentence.”
On the second day of the war, Rokossovsky’s 9th Mechanized Corps delivered an unexpected and powerful blow to German tanks that had broken through in the areas of Rovno and Lutsk, when the rest of the Soviet troops were retreating in panic. In an environment of disorganization, Rokossovsky showed coolness and courage in defending the Soviet regime. He managed to restore the combat effectiveness of the corps and make several successful counterattacks. After twenty days of the war, he was appointed Commander of the 16th Army, which distinguished itself in the battles near Smolensk and, especially, in the Battle of Moscow, where the German army was defeated for the first time. During the Battle of Stalingrad, Rokossovsky commanded the Don Front, which played a decisive role in the complete rout of the most powerful German grouping, consisting of twenty-two divisions.
During the Battle of Kursk, Rokossovsky was the Commander of the Central Front, which played the main role in the defeat of the Germans’ last chance for success. Later, Rokossovsky successfully commanded armed forces in Belorussia, Eastern Romania, and finally, in Berlin.
Stars fell onto Rokossovsky’s shoulders. They fell onto his shoulder boards and collar. In 1944, he was awarded the diamond Star of the Marshal and the Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. In 1945, he was awarded the Order of Victory, on which no fewer than a hundred diamonds sparkle, and a second Gold Star. Stalin honored him with the high privilege of commanding the Victory Parade on Red Square.
However, what does this have to do with the Warsaw Treaty Organization? Immediately after the war, Stalin sent his favorite, Rokossovsky, to Warsaw and awarded him the rank of Marshal of Poland to match his rank in the Soviet Union. In Warsaw, Rokossovsky took the post of Minister of Defense of Poland, Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, and a member of the Politburo of the Polish Communist Party. Imagine—a Marshal of the Soviet Union is a deputy in the Polish government!
Practically, Rokossovsky took the post of Governor (military administrator) of Poland, supervisor of the Polish government, and became the inspector of the Polish Politburo. As the plenipotentiary leader of Poland, Rokossovsky remained Stalin’s favorite, but a favorite who walked under the “gallows”—his sentence was annulled only after Stalin’s death in 1953. Such favorites could be shot at any moment. After all, even if the death sentence was forgotten, what could prevent its renewal?
Let us consider the same situation from the point of view of the Generalissimo of the Soviet Union, I. V. Stalin. He had a subordinate in Warsaw, Marshal of the Soviet Union Rokossovsky. This subordinate executes all orders exactly and quickly, without question. So why should Stalin conclude a military treaty with him?
Even expressing such a suggestion spoke of a violation of subordination and could offend the leader. A sergeant has no right to enter into a contract with his soldiers or his superiors. And at the same time, the Generalissimo is not authorized to conclude an alliance with his own Marshal! The right and duty of a commander is to issue orders, and subordinates are obliged to execute those orders. Other relationships between a subordinate and a commander are impossible. The relationship between Stalin and Rokossovsky was that Stalin gave orders, and Rokossovsky executed them without complaint.
3
Ignorance of the Polish language did not bother Rokossovsky. In those glorious days, none of the Polish generals knew their own language, relying on translators who were at hand.
In Russia in 1917, the Polish hero Felix Dzerzhinsky created a bloody organization that was called the Cheka (ChK), the predecessor of the GPU, NKVD, MGB, and KGB. Between 1939 and 1940, this organization destroyed the flower of the Polish officer corps.
During the war, a new Polish army was created by the Soviet Union. The soldiers and junior officers of this army were Poles, but the senior officers and generals were from the Land of Soviets. When they were appointed to the Polish army and given joint Soviet-Polish nationality, they remained the core of the Polish military hierarchy.
Here are some historical curiosities.
Fyodor Petrovich Polynin was born in 1906 in Saratov province. He joined the Red Army in 1928 and became a pilot. In 1938-39, he fought in China against Chiang Kai-shek and received Chinese nationality. Although he was a Chinese subject, he received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. He returned to the USSR and regained his Soviet nationality. During the war, he commanded the 13th Bomber Division, and then the 6th Air Army. In the Soviet Air Force, he became a Lieutenant General. In 1944, he became a Polish general. He never knew the Polish language, and yet he was appointed Commander of the Air Force of sovereign Poland.
In 1946, while holding a high position in Poland, he received the rank of Colonel General of Aviation. Simultaneously, he was also a Soviet general. The order granting the rank to the person who commanded the Polish Air Force was signed by the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, Generalissimo of the USSR I.V. Stalin, and this was mandatory for Poland.
After his stay in Poland, Fyodor Polynin was naturally returned to his Soviet rank, and he was appointed to the post of adviser to the Commander of the Soviet Air Force. During his command of the Polish Air Force, he did not learn a single Polish word. Why should he bother? Orders from Moscow came in Russian, and he also sent reports on their execution in Russian. None of his subordinates in the Polish Air Force headquarters spoke Polish, so there was no need to know the language.
Let us ask again—why should Stalin have concluded a military alliance with Fedia Polynin, if he was no more than a subordinate of Rokossovsky, who himself was subordinate to Stalin? Why create a military alliance if a more reliable and simple line of direct subordination has already been established?
4
The Polish army, which was created in 1943 on Soviet territory and was only a part of the Red Army, led by Soviet commanders, naturally did not obey the Polish government in London. In 1944, the Communists created a new “People’s Government,” most of which consisted of investigators from the NKVD and counterintelligence (SMERSH). However, even after the creation of the “People’s Government,” the Polish army did not come under its command, remaining part of the Red Army. After the war, the “People’s Government” of Poland had no authority to appoint generals or even to propose candidates for key positions. This was understandable, considering that the Polish generals were also Soviet generals, and moving them was tantamount to interference in the internal affairs of the USSR.
The Soviet government had no reason to create any semblance of the Warsaw Pact, a Consultative Committee, or any other similar organization. A treaty was unnecessary because the Polish army was no more than a part of the Soviet Army, and the Polish government was trained like whipping boys—it was not allowed to interfere in the affairs of its own army.
Nevertheless, after Stalin’s death, the Soviet government, led by Marshal of the Soviet Union Bulganin, decided to conclude a formal military agreement with the states it had occupied. Communist propaganda hysterically proclaimed what it was going to do to conclude such a voluntary agreement between free states. And the indicator of truth is the single official document. From the Soviet Union, it was signed by Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov, and from free and independent, people’s and socialist Poland—by Marshal of the Soviet Union Rokossovsky, who was assisted by Colonel General S.G. Poplavsky—Rokossovsky’s deputy. Marshal of the Soviet Union Bulganin, who was present at the ceremony, used the opportunity to promote Colonel General Poplavsky to the rank of General of the Army. You guessed, of course, that Poplavsky, who represented Poland, was also a Soviet general and was subordinate to Marshals Bulganin, Zhukov, and Rokossovsky. Two years later, Poplavsky returned to the USSR and became the General Inspector of the Soviet Army. These were the kinds of miracles that happened in Warsaw. Regardless of the existence of the Warsaw Pact. Rokossovsky, Poplavsky, Polynin, and other chiefs were forced to carry out orders that came from Moscow. The Warsaw Pact neither diminished nor increased Poland’s dependence on the USSR.
And yet Poland is a special case. It was simpler with other countries in Eastern Europe. In Czechoslovakia, there were such reliable people as Ludvík Svoboda, who neutralized the Czech army in 1948. He repeated this in 1968. He carried out the orders of the USSR clearly, and there was no need to keep a Soviet Marshal in Prague as the head of the Czech government.
Things also went smoothly with other Eastern European countries. During the war, all of them were enemies of the USSR, and therefore, it was possible to appoint any political figure—a general, an officer, or a simple soldier—to be replaced at any moment by a more pliable one. The system worked perfectly; Soviet embassies in Eastern Europe turned a blind eye to these operations. And what kind of ambassadors they were can be judged by the fact that when the Warsaw Pact was signed, the Soviet ambassador to Hungary was Yuri Andropov, who later became the head of the KGB. From this, it is clear why Hungary signed such treaties with a feeling of warmth and deep satisfaction.
Under Stalin, Poland and other Eastern European countries were ruled by a system of open dictatorship without any camouflage. The Warsaw Pact did not exist for only one reason—it was not needed! All decisions were made and discussed in the Kremlin. The Defense Ministers of the Eastern European countries were equated in status to the Commanders of Soviet military districts and were subordinate to the Minister of Defense of the USSR. All appointments and transfers were decided in the Kremlin. The Defense Ministers of the “independent” states of Eastern Europe were appointed either from Soviet generals or were Soviet advisers. In Romania and Bulgaria, for example, such an “adviser” was Marshal of the Soviet Union Tolbukhin. In East Germany—Marshal Zhukov, in Hungary—Marshal Konev. Each adviser had at least one tank army, several combined arms armies, and special SMERSH detachments. Therefore, arguing with the “adviser” was a rather risky business.
After Stalin’s death, the Soviet leaders embarked on a policy of “liberalization.” In Eastern Europe, the Soviet government decided to hide its fangs behind a mask of “voluntary” agreements similar to the NATO model.
Some people in Eastern Europe genuinely thought that the dictatorial regime had come to an end and that the time had come for the voluntary conclusion of a military treaty. But they were mistaken. A year after the signing of the “voluntary” treaty, the actions of Soviet tanks in Poland and Hungary clearly showed that everything remained as it was under Stalin, except for some small cosmetic changes.
Communist propaganda quite deliberately confuses two concepts. Military capability of the Communist countries of Eastern Europe and the Warsaw Pact. The military organization of the Eastern European countries was created immediately upon the arrival of the Red Army on their territory in 1944-1945. At the same time, for example, a military pro-Communist regime was established in Poland and Czechoslovakia even before the entry of the Red Army.
The armies of the Eastern European countries, where Soviet “military advisers” were stationed, were completely controlled by Moscow. This military system was neither a multilateral organization nor a series of bilateral defense treaties—it was imposed on a unilateral basis, in a form that still exists.
The Warsaw Pact is a chimera, brought to life to disguise the tyranny of the Soviet Union in the occupied countries and to create an illusion of freedom. Communist propaganda stated that the organization was created in response to the formation of NATO, and the Eastern European countries created a counter-alliance. The truth is that by the end of World War II, the Soviet Union had taken complete control of the armies of the countries it had captured, and this was long before the appearance of NATO. Many years later, the Communist Party decided to conceal its aims and present the NATO attempt as the establishment of military boundaries in Europe.
But the Communists lacked the imagination to establish this formal organization, which exists only to cover up a bleak reality, tactfully and tastefully. During the first thirteen years of this organization’s existence, the Defense Ministers of the sovereign states were either pro-Soviet puppets or actual Soviet generals and Marshals who were subordinate to the Chief of Staff, appointed by the Soviet government, who was a member of the Defense Committee of the USSR. Thus, even legally, the Defense Ministers of these theoretically sovereign states were directly subordinate to the Soviet Deputy Minister. After the events in Czechoslovakia, an attempt was made to imitate the unity of the Consultative Committee. In this Committee, the Defense Ministers and Heads of State gathered to discuss issues as equal allies. But this was a game. Everything remained as it was decades ago. Decisions were formulated in the Kremlin. And the Consultative Committee could not make any decisions independently.
Any attempt to understand the structure and organization of the committees and staffs that make up the Warsaw Pact is a waste of time and effort. It’s like trying to understand how the Supreme Soviet makes its decisions or how the President governs the Soviet Union—to understand the nature of his powers and degree of responsibility. We already know that such an organization, despite its complex structure, is completely unreal. The Supreme Soviet does not form policy, nor does it make decisions. It is a purely decorative organization, like the Warsaw Pact. An organization for show, and nothing more.
At the same time, the President of the Soviet Union does nothing and makes no decisions, nor does he bear responsibility or hold power. His post was invented to disguise the unlimited power of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU.
The Warsaw Pact represents an organization of the Supreme Soviet type. Its function is to cover up the Kremlin’s dictatorship. Its Consultative Committee is intended to hide the fact that decisions are made at the General Staff of the Soviet Armed Forces, on Gogolevsky Boulevard in Moscow. The function of the Commander-in-Chief of the Warsaw Pact is purely decorative. Like the President, he has no authority. Although he is listed among the first deputies of the Soviet Minister of Defense, this is a legacy of the past and no more than an honor for being removed from real power.
During the war and the “Danube Operation,” the “allied” divisions of the Warsaw Pact were part of the Soviet Army. None of the armies of Eastern Europe have the right to create their own corps, armies, or fronts. They only have divisions, which are commanded by Soviet generals. In the event of war, their Defense Ministers only play a role in ensuring the training and readiness of their units, which will act as parts of the Joint (Soviet) Armed Forces.
In conclusion, a few words about the ultimate goal of the Warsaw Pact: the dissolution of all military blocs in Europe and, consequently, in the world. This is the real aspiration of the Soviet Union. It is based on a very simple calculation. If NATO is dissolved, the West will be neutralized once and for all. The system of collective security of free countries will cease to exist. But if the Warsaw Treaty Organization is dissolved, the USSR will lose nothing but a propaganda machine. All the armies of the “alliance” will remain under control. The military organization will undoubtedly survive. This will be the final point at the end of a bureaucratic organization that no one needs.
Suppose, for example, that France should suddenly return to NATO. What would change? Of course—almost an international sensation. And now, suppose that small Cuba violated its “neutrality” and joined the Warsaw Pact. And what would change? Absolutely nothing. Cuba would remain the aggressive fisherman of a big shark that it is now.
-6-
Millions of people see NATO and the Warsaw Pact as equivalent groupings. But this comparison is absurd because the Warsaw Treaty Organization did not actually exist. A Soviet dictatorship exists, and there is no need to consult with its allies. If necessary, the USSR can easily seize all these countries—if necessary, the Communists do not recognize any other relationship with their colleagues.
This is a truism known to everyone, and besides, hundreds of books were published annually in which the Soviet Army was described as the main force of the Warsaw Pact. This is incorrect, because the forces of the Warsaw Pact are part of the Soviet Army. The Eastern European countries are equipped with Soviet weapons, their personnel are trained in Soviet academies, and they are controlled by Soviet “advisers.” The truth is that some troops in the Eastern European countries would be happy to turn their bayonets against the Kremlin leaders, but there are also Soviet troops who are ready for this, and there have been frequent cases of mutinies on Soviet ships and in Soviet units.
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