The army was first formed during the Winter War, in which two of its divisions fought in the Battle of Petsamo. After Operation Barbarossa, the army fought against German and Finnish attacks in Operation Silver Fox. In the middle of July 1941 the army was able to hold its positions. In October 1944 it fought in the Petsamo–Kirkenes Offensive and seized Pechenga. The army defended and guarded the newly captured territory until the end of the war. Its headquarters became the Belomorsky Military District at the end of July 1945. The army reformed in June 1948 from the 126th Light Mountain Rifle Corps as the 14th Army (Assault). Stationed on the Chukchi Peninsula, the army's mission was to invade Alaska in event of a war. It was disbanded in May 1953 after Stalin's death.