The Strategic Missile Troops or Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation or RVSN RF are a military branch of the Russian Armed Forces that controls Russia’s land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The RVSN was first formed in the Soviet Armed Forces, and when the USSR collapsed in December 1991, it effectively changed its name from the Soviet to the Russian Strategic Rocket Forces or Strategic Missile Troops. They are designed for nuclear deterrence of a possible aggression and, for defeat of strategic objects located in one or more strategic air-space areas and forming the basis of the enemy’s military and military-economic potential by means of large-scale, group or single nuclear missile attacks.
The Strategic Rocket Forces were created on December 17, 1959 as the main force used for attacking an enemy’s offensive nuclear weapons, military facilities, and industrial infrastructure. They operated all Soviet nuclear ground-based intercontinental, intermediate-range ballistic missile, and medium-range ballistic missile with ranges over 1,000 kilometers. Complementary strategic forces within Russia are the Long Range Aviation and the Russian Navy’s ballistic missile submarines.
The composition of missiles and warheads of the Strategic Rocket Forces previously had to be revealed as part of the START I treaty data exchange. The current (January 2017) order of battle of the forces is as follows:
- 27th Guards Rocket Army (HQ: Vladimir)
98th Separate Mixed Aviation Squadron
7th Guards Rocket Division at Vypolzovo
14th Rocket Division at Yoshkar-Ola with 6 mobile RS-24 Yars
54th Guards Rocket Division at Teykovo with 18 mobile RT-2UTTH Topol-M and 18 (December 2011)[33] mobile RS-24
28th Guards Rocket Division at Kozelsk with 12 silo-based RS-24
60th Rocket Division at Tatischevo with 30 silo-based UR-100NUTTH and 60 silo-based RT-2UTTH Topol-M - 31st Missile Army (HQ: Rostoshi)
102nd Separate Mixed Aviation Squadron
13th Red Banner Rocket Division at Dombarovskiy with 18 silo-based R-36M2 and presumed experimental variants of the UR-100NUTTH with final hypersonic velocity warheads (Project 4202).[34] The R-36s will be replaced with the new RS-28 Sarmat when operational.[35]
42nd Rocket Division at Nizhniy Tagil with 27 mobile RS-24 Yars - 33rd Guards Rocket Army (HQ: Omsk)
105th Separate Mixed Aviation Squadron
35th Rocket Division at Barnaul with 36 mobile RT-2PM Topol
39th Guards Rocket Division at Novosibirsk with 27 mobile RS-24 Yars
62nd Rocket Division at Uzhur with 28 silo-based R-36M2, which will also replaced with the new RS-28 Sarmat when operational.
