Russian National Guard

The **National Guard of the Russian Federation** (Russian: Федеральная служба войск национальной гвардии Российской Федерации, romanized: *Federal'naya sluzhba voysk natsional'noy gvardii Rossiyskoy Federatsii*, 'Federal Service of the Troops of the National Guard of the Russian Federation') or **Rosgvardiya** (Russian: Росгвардия) is the internal military force of Russia, comprising an independent agency that reports directly to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin under his powers as Supreme Commander-in-Chief and Chairman of the Security Council.

The National Guard is separate from the Russian Armed Forces. A law signed by Putin established the federal executive body in 2016. The National Guard has the stated mission of securing Russia's borders, taking charge of gun control, combating terrorism and organized crime, protecting public order and guarding important state facilities.

The establishment of the National Guard was seen as an effort to enhance efficiency and to avoid duplication of responsibilities within the Russian security system, a result of an extensive assessment of strategic challenges facing Russia. Others have accused the Rosgvardyia of being an attempt by Putin to create a private army to control civil strife or attempts of a colour revolution, not only domestically but also abroad in friendly regimes.

As of 2018 the National Guard numbered approximately 340,000 personnel in 84 units across Russia; it consolidated the forces of the MVD Internal Troops, SOBR, OMON and other internal military forces outside of the Russian Armed Forces.

In 2017, Putin designated 27 March as National Guard Day, linking the National Guard to a long history of public-security services within Russia – a decree of Emperor Alexander I organised the Internal Guards Corps on 27 March in the Old Style Julian calendar in 1811.

## Organization and Leadership

The National Guard of Russia is directly subordinated to the supreme commander-in-chief (i.e. President of Russia) with the incumbent head of this new structure included into the Security Council as a permanent member.

The National Guard is to take over many of the existing duties of the special police forces thus eliminating the link on their use that previously existed between President Putin and his Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev.

In a major overhaul of Russia's security agencies, the National Guard which will include Interior Ministry troops, servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces (including paratroopers, air force, navy and military police), and (as proposed in 2012) Ministry of Emergency Situations personnel (such as fire fighters and rescue workers) consisting of both conscripts and contract personne and will take over functions previously managed by the OMON riot police and SOBR rapid-reaction forces. In turn, the Federal Migration Service (FMS) and the Federal Drug Service (FSKN) are to be incorporated into the structure of the Interior Ministry.

In operation, the National Guard is expected to number some 350,000 to 400,000 men. However, as of May 2016 the Russian government did not propose the size of the forces actually needed. The establishing Presidential decree points out that the transformation process should be completed by 1 June 2016.

As for personnel policies, on 20 April 2016 FNGS Director Zolotov stated that the National Guard of Russia is to exclude the appointment of employees with low moral and professional qualities who have committed defamatory acts.

### Composition

The National Guard of Russia is organized into a composed structure, consisting of six broad elements:

* National Guard Forces Command (Войска национальной гвардии), which handles the operational units (formerly belonging to the Interior Troops);
	+ including the ODON and the National Guard Naval Service Corps;
* National Guard Special Operations and Aviation Center, including Zubr, Vityaz, Rus and Yastreb special units;
* National Guard SOBR, Berkut and OMON Units;
* Administrations and other departments exercising federal oversight over firearms and private security regulation, personal protection and government personnel security guard service, including the Center for Specially Designated Government Personnel Security Protection (formerly belonging to the MVD \*);
* The federal state unitary enterprise "Okhrana" (provides paid security / rapid response services to citizens).

The diversity of the units under the National Guard is also reflected in the rank structure. Units originating from the former Internal Troops have army style ranks. Former police units such as SOBR, OMON and various licensing departments have special police ranks, which are distinguished by the denominator *"... of police"* (*"... полиции"*). Flying units personnel has air force style ranks distinguished by the denominator *"... of aviation"* (*"... авиации"*). Maritime units personnel has navy style ranks.

## Mission

Missions of the National Guard of Russia include joint operations in securing borders (in assistance to the Border Service of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation) fighting terrorism, organized crime, and to perform the functions which are currently carried out by riot police units (OMON, SOBR, etc.), as well as prison police units. However the National Guard does not perform field investigation activities. The Federal Service has powers in the sphere of weapons turnover and control of private security activities.

The National Guard also is to work to protect public safety and order along with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and guard important state facilities.

According to President Vladimir Putin, a major area of responsibility of the National Guard is the overseeing the various kinds of security provisions and the authorization system of the right to possess firearms, the oversight of private security firms and the management of the interior troops proper.

## \* Subcomposition

* **OMON**: **OMON** (Russian: ОМОН – Отряд Мобильный Особого Назначения, *Otryad Mobiĺný Osobogo Naznacheniya*, 'Special Purposes Mobile Unit (SPMU)', previously Russian: Отряд Милиции Особого Назначения, *Otryad Militsiì Osobogo Naznacheniya*, 'Special Purposes Unit of the Militia') is a system of special police units within the National Guard of Russia. It previously operated within the structures of the Soviet and Russian Ministries of Internal Affairs (MVD). Originating as the special forces unit of the Soviet Militsiya in 1988, it has played major roles in several armed conflicts during and following the 1991 dissolution of the Soviet Union. OMON is much larger and better known than SOBR, another special-police branch of the National Guard of Russia. In modern contexts, OMON serves as a riot police group, or as a gendarmerie-like paramilitary force. OMON units also exist in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and other post-Soviet states. However, some post-Soviet units have changed names and acronyms. Russian-speakers commonly refer to OMON officers as ***omonovtsy*** (Russian: омоновцы; singular: omonovyets – Russian: омоновец). On 5 April 2016 OMON became part of the newly-established National Guard of Russia, ending its years as part of the MVD. The MVD continues to operate the Police of Russia.
* **MVD**: **Internal troops**, sometimes alternatively translated as **interior troops**, **interior ministry forces**, are military or paramilitary, gendarmerie-like law enforcement services, which are found mostly in states of the former Soviet Union, primarily Russia. Internal troops are subordinated to the interior minister (and interior ministries) of their respective countries. Perhaps the most prominent example, since the Soviet era have been the Russian Внутренние войска Министерства внутренних дел (ВВ) **Vnutrenniye Voiska** (VV) Ministerstva Vnutrennikh Del, or "Internal Troops of the Ministry for Internal Affairs" (MVD) (until 2016). Other countries that have had such forces include: Ukraine (until 2014), Georgia (until 2004), Kazakhstan (until 2014), Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria (until 1991), Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan. Mongolian internal troops are officially a reserve force in the Armed Forces of Mongolia. These forces were introduced during the Soviet era, initially to provide armed, tactical responses for the *militsiya* – literally "militia", but a close equivalent of the major police organizations found in other countries. Over time, internal troops also gained responsibility for waging civil war, safeguarding of highly-important facilities (like nuclear power plants), large-scale crowd control and prison security (except in Russia). As such, these forces have been involved in major wars as well as combating insurgencies and other civil unrest, including the Russian Civil War, World War II, mass repressions of Stalinist era, and the Chechen Wars. During wartime, internal troops fall under armed forces military command and fulfill the missions of local defence and rear area security.