page_title: Mess dress uniform
section_title: Russia and the former USSR
hierarchical_section_title: Mess dress uniform / Russia and the former USSR
caption_attribution_description: Русский: Церемония представления офицеров, назначенных на высшие командные должности.
context_page_description: Mess dress uniform is the semi-formal type of uniforms used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for certain ceremonies, receptions, and celebrations, in messes or on private occasions. It frequently consists of a mess jacket, trousers, white dress shirt, often with standing collar and bow tie, along with orders and medals insignia. Design may depend on regiment or service branch, e.g. army, navy, air force, marines, etc. In Western dress codes, mess dress uniform is a permitted supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian black tie for evening wear or black lounge suit for day wear - sometimes collectively called half dress - although military uniforms are the same for day and evening wear. As such, mess dress uniform is considered less formal than full dress uniform, but more formal than service dress uniform.
  Prior to World War II, this style of military uniform was largely restricted to the British and United States Armed Forces, although the French, German, Swedish and other navies had adopted their own versions of mess dress during the late 19th century, influenced by the British Royal Navy.
context_section_description: While officially the Soviet and post-Soviet military forces do not wear mess uniform, a version of it was introduced in July 1969 for senior generals only (Russian: парадно-выходная форма), who wore light-grey tunics on special occasions (mostly reception of state awards). This uniform was abandoned in the 1990s but reintroduced under President Putin, again for senior generals only. The grey tunic uniform should be distinguished from the blue or dark green full-dress parade uniform regularly worn on holidays and ceremonies (Russian: парадная форма).
caption: Senior Russian military officers receiving awards from President Putin, 2019.
exif: {}